Five politicians were released from detention in Srinagar after the central government scraps the Jammu and Kashmir’s special status
NEW DELHI| After nearly four months of detention, five political leaders of Jammu and Kashmir were released today following the centre’s decision to scrap the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. Kashmir’s most prominent faces are still detained.
Three most prominent leaders National Conference president Farooq Abdullah, his son Omar Abdullah and Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti continue to be in detention centre. The centre has said it’s up to the administration of Kashmir if they feel the situation is under control the leaders will be released. But yet the exact time is not specified.
The five former lawmakers have been released from the MLA hostel are Ishfaq Jabbar, Ghulam Nabi Bhat, Bashir Mir Zahoor Mir and Yasir Reshi, belonging to the Peoples Democratic Party, National Conference and the Congress. The MLA house includes over 30 former ministers and legislators.
The BJP-led centre had scrapped Jammu and Kashmir’s special status under Article 370 through a presidential order on August 5 and clamped down on the state to prevent a backlash from the public. Shortly afterwards, it bifurcated the state into two union territories.
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Most of the political leaders in the state were placed in detention hours before the centre took the unprecedented step, saying it was an essential step towards ensuring that they do not fan dissent among the people. It also enforced an Internet blackout in the state, restoring it after 145 days on Friday.
“The situation in the region is normal only because these leaders have been detained. The results of these detentions are clear. No bloodbath happened this time because these leaders were kept out,” Farookh Khan, advisor to the Jammu and Kashmir governor, had told NDTV.
Political leaders in Jammu were released in October, two months after they were taken into custody.
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