SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday stepped up his criticism of PDP president Mehbooba Mufti over her remarks at a protest in New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, accusing her of justifying the use of force against people in Kashmir and urging her to apologise.
The remarks came amid a political row over a video from the Jantar Mantar protest on alleged examination irregularities, in which Mufti said that while police action against students in Delhi was wrong, the situation in Kashmir was different because of militancy. The comments have triggered criticism from political opponents.
Speaking to reporters in Srinagar, CM said militancy could not be cited to justify the denial of justice or constitutional rights to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
“What she said was that the use of force, arrests and such actions in Kashmir are understandable because there is militancy here. I fail to understand how that can be justified,” he said.
The Chief Minister questioned whether the presence of militancy meant that laws should not be applied fairly or that people could be denied justice. He also accused Mufti of taking one position in Jammu and Kashmir and another in Delhi, alleging that she had attempted to “make some people happy” in the national capital.
Abdullah said Mufti should have acknowledged that her remarks were inappropriate instead of defending them. “When people realise they have said something wrong and that it has hurt sentiments, they apologise. Instead of apologising, more salt is being rubbed into the wounds,” he said.
Rejecting claims by a PDP legislator that the viral video had been generated using artificial intelligence, Abdullah said the footage was recorded by multiple television crews present at the venue and that dismissing it as AI was not credible.
He also referred to previous controversies involving the PDP, including its alliance with the BJP in 2015 and the events of 2016, alleging that the party had failed to express regret over those decisions.
The Chief Minister further said that remarks appearing to justify the suppression of protests in Jammu and Kashmir could discourage people from exercising their democratic rights in future, including participating in movements for issues such as statehood.
In a separate statement, Abdullah said Mehbooba Mufti “should have stayed home instead of going to Jantar Mantar to justify misuse of power against Kashmiris”, adding that her remarks had intensified the ongoing political confrontation between the ruling National Conference and the PDP.
