Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister and leader of National Conference (NC) Farooq Abdullah (L) along with ... Read More

SRINAGAR: National Conference on Sunday demanded that its party president Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar, both under detention for over two months since the Centre’s August 5 announcement on nullification of Articles 370 and 35A, be released ahead of the Block Development Council (BDC) polls in Jammu & Kashmir on October 24.

The demand came on a day when the administration allowed a 15-member party delegation to meet the two former NC CMs. The administration also gave permission to a delegation of Peoples Democratic Party leaders to meet party chief Mehbooba Mufti on Monday. Mehbooba, too, was put under detention hours before the August 5 announcement.

Commenting on the BDC polls soon after the NC delegation met the Abdullahs, NC’s Jammu region president, Devender Singh Rana, told journalists: “If the political process has to start, our leaders have to be released.”

However, the NC leaders refused to take questions on Article 370 and 35A. “We will decide the future course of action after the leaders are released,” Rana said to queries on the now defunct provisions that accorded special status to the people of J&K. NC sources said the political situation in the state after the Centre’s August 5 decision was extensively discussed in the meetings with the Abdullahs.

This was the first time since Omar’s detention that anyone from NC had met him. Sporting a beard, Omar clicked a selfie with party delegation members at Hari Niwas, his temporary abode. After meeting him, the NC team went to his father’s residence at Gupkar Road, where he has been detained under the Public Safety Act (PSA). The delegation was received by Farooq’s wife Molly. Making his first public appearance before journalists after August 6, a beaming Farooq displayed a victory sign. However, he refused to take any questions.

The NC delegation included the party’s two Lok Sabha MPs, Mohammad Akbar Lone and Justice (retd) Hasnain Masoodi. The meetings followed a request made by NC leaders to J&K governor S P Malik last week.

The two MPs had earlier met Farooq after securing an order from the J&K high court.

Expressing his anguish over the lockdown in J&K, Rana said: “For the political process to start and democracy to revive in J&K, NC wants all political detenues, whether from mainstream political parties or otherwise, who have no criminal record, to be released.”

The PDP delegation that will call on Mehbooba on Monday will be led by party general secretary Ved Mahajan.



In Video: NC delegation meets Farooq Abdullah at his residence in Srinagar