Jammu and Kashmir People’s Movement President Shah Faesal on Tuesday termed the situation in the Valley as one of “unprecedented horror” following the decision of the Union government to scrap the state’s special status under Article 370.

“Unprecedented horror in Kashmir,” Faesal, a former Indian Administrative Service officer, tweeted. “Everyone is heartbroken. A sense of defeat written on every face. Fall. From citizens to subjects. History has taken a catastrophic turn for all of us. People are numb. A people whose land, identity, history, was stolen, in broad daylight.”

Unprecedented horror in Kashmir.



Everyone is heartbroken. A sense of defeat written on every face. Fall.

From citizens to subjects.

History has taken a catastrophic turn for all of us.

People are numb.

A people whose land, identity, history, was stolen, in broad day light. — Shah Faesal (@shahfaesal) August 6, 2019

Union Home Minister Amit Shah had on Monday introduced a bill in the Rajya Sabha to revoke the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370. He also moved a resolution to reorganise the state by declaring Jammu and Kashmir a union territory, and Ladakh a separate union territory.

National Conference leader Omar Abdullah and Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti had been put under house arrest on Sunday night. The two were arrested on Monday, while Jammu and Kashmir remained under curfew for the second day.

“Today marks the darkest day in Indian democracy,” Mufti had said in a series of tweets on Monday. “Decision of J&K leadership to reject two-nation theory in 1947 and align with India has backfired. Abdullah said the government’s unilateral decision was shocking and “a total betrayal of the trust that the people of Jammu and Kashmir had reposed in India when the state acceded to it in 1947”.

The bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha on Monday and the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, with Opposition parties split on voting. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi called the government’s decision to jail Kashmiri politicians “unconstitutional and undemocratic”. However, several Congress leaders, including party general secretary Jyotiraditya Scindia, voiced their support for the bill.