Invoking PSA on former CM's belies govt claims that everything is normal in J-K': CPI(M)

The CPI(M) on Friday slammed the government for invoking the Public Safety Act against former Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah, saying the move belies the Centre's claims that "everything is normal in J-K".

Former Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti were on Thursday night booked under the stringent PSA, barely hours before their six-month-long "preventive detention" was to come to an end.

The PSA was also slapped on two political stalwarts from NC and its arch-rival PDP.

The party said the prime minister, while replying to the Motion of Thanks to the President's Address in the Rajya Sabha, had claimed that the statements made by the former chief ministers were "not acceptable while it has been shown that these statements have been taken from a twitter handle of a satire website - Faking News".

"The baselessness of this allegation has been established. That the Modi government should take recourse to such false news for slapping the notorious PSA belies the claims that everything is normal in J&K.

"Thousands continue to be detained even after six months. Lakhs of livelihoods have been disrupted and normal day to day activity simply does not exist. This is an affront to the Indian Constitution and democracy," it said.

The CPI(M) demanded the release of all those who have been detained since the night of August 4, a day before the Centre abrogated provisions of Article 370 that gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

"The Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) strongly condemns the invoking of the draconian Public Safety Act on former Chief Ministers of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti.

"The former served under a BJP government as minister of state and the latter as chief minister of the state in coalition with the BJP, under oath of the Indian Constitution," the party said in a statement.

The party also urged that the democratic processes under the Indian Constitution be re-established.