Srinagar: With Union Home Minister Amit Shah saying that the Centre is mulling revoation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) from Jammu and Kashmir, Peoples Democratic Party President and former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has welcomed the statement and said that it should not be confined to mere rhetoric.
The PDP chief asked the Central government to release journalists and Kashmiris languishing in jail "without any charges", to begin with.
In a post on X, Mehbooba wrote, "PDP has consistently demanded the revocation of draconian AFSPA along with a gradual removal of troops. It also formulated an important part of our Agenda of Alliance wholeheartedly agreed upon by BJP. Der aayee durust aaye. Better late than never but only if it isn't jumlebaazi like generating two crore jobs every year or empty promises of depositing 15 lacs into bank accounts”.
"One can only hope that they fulfil their commitment at least in this case since it would bring a huge relief to the people of J&K. To walk the talk perhaps MHA can start by releasing journalists & thousands of young Kashmiri boys currently languishing in jails without any charges or prosecution," she added.
The PDP President was reacting to the statement of Union Home Minister Amit Shah that the Union Government will consider repealing the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act from Jammu and Kashmir adding the Centre has planned to withdraw the armed forces from UT and leave the task of maintaining law and order to the Jammu and Kashmir Police.
