Condemning the scrapping of J&K special status, Stalin said in a statement that the detention of family members of political leaders in Jammu and Kashmir was “unacceptable”.
Stalin’s remark came after Itija Mufti, the daughter of former J&K chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, wrote a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Independence Day seeking clarity on her detention at her Srinagar residence.
“The Central government has isolated Kashmir from India by imposing a curfew, using repressive forces and implementing prohibitory orders. By cutting channels of communication, the government has unnecessarily created a hostile environment,” the DMK statement read.
Besides three former chief ministers and an IAS topper, the list of those detained in Jammu and Kashmir includes a former Union minister, seven former state ministers, the Mayor and Deputy Mayor of Srinagar, and a number of legislators.
The DMK had also raised the issue of detention of J&K political leaders in the Parliament.
DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran had raised a question in Lok Sabha about the absence of Farooq Abdullah during a debate on the government’s decision to end special status to J&K.
“Farooq Abdullah, a member of this House, is missing. He is arrested and we have no intimation. You as a Speaker should protect the members. You should be neutral,” Maran said.
On the day the government announced the decision on J&K, Stalin had called it “murder of democracy”.
“Without consulting people of Jammu and Kashmir, Article 370 has been taken away. Democracy has been murdered. AIADMK is also supporting the decision which is condemnable,” Stalin had said.
(With inputs from media)
