On the eve of the fourth anniversary of the abolition of Article 370 in Kashmir, former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti said that she and other leaders of the People’s Democratic Party had been placed under house arrest in Srinagar.
The government reportedly declined a request by Mufti’s Jammu and Kashmir People’s Democratic Party to host a seminar, as reported by the Hindustan Times.
I and many other top PDP officials have been placed under house arrest as of today. A nocturnal operation has resulted in the unlawful detention of dozens of my party guys at local police stations. The paranoia-driven activities of the GOI belie their assertions of normality before the SC, as Mufti tweeted.
Large billboards in Srinagar have been urging Kashmiris to “celebrate” the unconstitutional repeal of Article 370. while force is being used to stifle people’s true feelings. She further expressed hope that the Supreme Court will take note of these developments at the time of the hearing on Article 370.
The former state of Jammu and Kashmir was split into the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh on 5 August 2019 when the federal government withdrew Article 370, which had granted it some autonomy.
“Our representative was told around 5 PM on 4th August 2023 that the sought permission is declined without assigning any reason,” a PDP spokeswoman said.
