Ex-J&K CM Mehbooba Mufti says 'house arrested on Martyrs Day'

Mehbooba shared a video showing the locked gate of her residence as she asks the security personnel why she was being barred from moving out.

Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir): Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and People's Democratic President Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday said that the Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha led J&K administration had put her under house arrest to bar her from visiting the Martyrs' Graveyard in downtown Srinagar on the occasion of Martyrs' Day.

"I'm under house arrest for wanting to visit Martyr’s graveyard today. This at a time when GOI (Government of India) has used its tall claims of normalcy in the SC (Supreme Court) to justify an act of betrayal- the illegal abrogation of Article 370," Mehbooba wrote in a tweet. “BJPs own heroes Vir Sarvarkar, Shyama Prasad Mukheriji ,Gowalkar and Godse who spread hatred and divison can’t be forced on us. For us those who sacrificed their lives for democracy to take root in J&K will always be admired for their act of courage. We won’t allow you to distort our history or forget our heroes. On the occasion of Martyrs day, I salute their courage for valiantly fighting against despots to the end,” she said.

The PDP President also shared a video of her locked inside her official residence in Srinagar's Khimber area. In the video, the main gate of her residence can be seen locked with chains from inside with Mehbooba asking the security personnel why she was being barred to move outside. Mehbooba and her daughter Iltija can be seen attempting to open the gate of the residence while asking the security forces personnel stationed outside for clarification.

Mehbooba can be heard in the video asking the personnel why the gate is being closed with chains and barbed wire. Mainstream political party leaders in Kashmir paid tribute to the 22 civilians shot dead by the forces of Hari Singh, the last autocratic ruler of Jammu and Kashmir on this day on July 13, 1931. Earlier, Vice President of the National Conference Omar Abdullah had to walk to his party office on foot to attend a function on Martyrs' Day.