Rahul Gandhi, Other Leaders To Reach Srinagar Today; J-K Govt To Send Them Back From Airport

The Jammu and Kashmir government on Friday night asked political leaders not to visit the Valley as it would disturb the gradual restoration of peace and normal life.

Image: ANI

New Delhi: The Jammu and Kashmir government is likely to forbid Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders from visiting Srinagar and will send them back from airport, sources on Saturday claimed. A delegation of Opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, are visiting Jammu and Kashmir today, after the abrogation of Article 370. The government on Friday night asked political leaders not to visit the Valley as it would disturb the gradual restoration of peace and normal life. It also said the visit by politicians would be in violation of restrictions that have been imposed in many areas of the Valley. At a time when the government is trying to protect the people of the state from the threat of cross-border terrorism and attacks by militants and separatists and gradually trying to restore public order by controlling miscreants and mischief-mongers, attempts should not be made by senior political leaders to disturb the gradual restoration of normal life, the statement said. The statement comes ahead of the the proposed visit by opposition members, including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, on Saturday to meet people of Kashmir where restrictions are imposed after the Centre withdrew special status to the state. So far, the government has not allowed any political leader to enter the state ever since the Centre abrogated provisions of Article 370. Leaders of regional parties, including former chief ministers Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti, have been put under house arrest. Congress MP Ghulam Nabi  Azad was not allowed to enter the state and was stopped twice, both at Srinagar and Jammu. Along with Gandhi, leaders of various opposition parties, including Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma from the Congress, will also visit the Valley, they said. According to sources, some of the parties that will be part of the opposition all-party delegation are Congress, CPI-M, CPI, RJD, NCP, TMC and DMK. CPI-M's Sitaram Yechury, CPI's D Raja, DMK's Tiruchi Siva, RJD's Manoj Jha and Dinesh Trivedi from TMC will also be part of the delegation that will leave for Srinagar around noon from Delhi airport, the sources said. Senior Congress leaders were huddled in a meeting on Friday evening to discuss the issue within the party. The sources said the leaders also intend to visit some other parts of the state, if allowed to enter. So far, the government has not allowed any political leader to enter the state ever since provisions of Article 370 were abrogated by the Centre.