West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday claimed that the whereabouts of National Conference top leader Farooq Abdullah was not known and expressed concern over it.
Hitting out at the Centre, DMK president M K Stalin accused the BJP-led government of trying to recreate the "black history" of incarceration of National Conference founder Sheikh Abdullah and assured that his party will continue to oppose scrapping of Article 370.
Banerjee said if a decision was taken in respect of any particular state, people of that state should be taken into confidence, an apparent reference to scrapping of Article 370.
"Sometimes some political parties can take a decision but please remember if you take a decision about Tamil Nadu, people there should be taken into confidence," and similarly if it concerned Bengal, its populace should be consulted, she said.
Addressing the gathering at a public meeting held by the DMK to commemorate the first death anniversary of former party chier M Karunanidhi, she said she saw a video clip of the former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah and if it was "correct," he was seen "crying," since he could not visit his daughter's house.
"What is happening," she said and mentioned the names of former Chief Ministers, Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah and expressed concern over their whereabouts.
Describing Farooq as a nice and an elderly person, she said the NC top leader was not able to attend the DMK event though as per the original agenda for the event, he was scheduled to take part.
"But now I am sorry, today he is not available, because we do not know about his whereabouts, we are really concerned," she said.
Farooq Abdullah had on Tuesday contested Union Home Minister Amit Shah's assertion in Parliament that he was neither under detention nor arrest and was at his home out of his own will.
Referring to leaders ranging from Mahatma Gandhi, Babasaheb Ambedkar, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose to Karunanidhi and former Chief Minister M G Ramachandran, she said "we have to fight the battle, we can do it and we will do it."
"Nowadays, why we are fighting this battle, because we have to respect Mahatma Gandhi, we cannot forget him...they were not afraid, not scared," she said apparently targeting the BJP.
The battle was against "atrocities and fascism", she said, adding "we are ready to do it, we are ready to sacrifice our life, but we cannot sacrifice our motherland, we cannot sacrifice our Tamil land, we cannot sacrifice our Bengal land, we cannot sacrifice our country."
In what appeared to be a veiled message against the BJP, she told the youth "you have to fight the battle....don't worry, be bold and say yes and we will conquer the world, we can do it.
...care only about human beings and our mother land and they cannot isolate us from our ideology or our icons."
Hailing Karunanidhi as an iconic leader who continued to touch people's lives though not alive, she said "he lives in our hearts," and went on to recall the midnight arrest of the late leader in 2001.
She said the late leader's arrest was strongly criticised then and added the episode was etched in her mind.
He will be remembered forever for his "mission, vision and action," she said. "I salute him and all of you."
The West Bengal Chief Minister said Stalin, the DMK chief, was also fighting the battle like his father who was dedicated to federalism, welfare of minorities, and state autonomy.
Batting for importance to mother tounge, regional languages, and a united India, she said "we love all religions, all castes and all the people."
"We are Indian of course, but we have a mother tongue, we have our own identity and every people have their own identity," apparently suggesting that it should be protected.
She spoke a few words in Tamil, hailing Karunanidhi as one of "the proud sons of mother India," and extended her wishes on the occasion.
Banerjee said "Tamil brothers and sisters, you are brave...you are like tigers who do not care for their lives and fight for a cause, and work for their State."
She assured the gathering that she would learn some Tamil words when she visited the State next time.
DMK chief M K Stalin said Farooq Abdullah could not attend the event since he was unde house arrest.
Tracing the life and times of Sheik Abdullah, Farooq Abdullah's father, he said the Sheik was confined at Kodaikanal in Tamil Nadu and "they (the BJP-led Centre) are trying to recreate that black history."
Reiterating his party's stand against repeal of Article 370, he said in view of this position no one needed to lecture them on nationalism.
"In the name of nationalism, the BJP government is today fomenting communalism and the DMK will oppose this duplicity with determination," he said.
Stalin also condoled the death of former External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj.
Puducherry Chief Minister Narayanan hailed Karunanidhi as a multi-faceted personality and described Banerjee as a "tigress of West Bengal.
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