Mufti, Abdullah not terrorists, release them, says Mamata as she opposes Article 370

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has finally spoken about the abrogation of Article 370 and 35A in Jammu and Kashmir. The Trinamool Congress chief has made it clear that her party will neither support nor back the scrapping of Article in Parliament. Addressing media in Kolkata, Banerjee said that, “We cannot support this bill. We cannot vote for this bill. They should have spoken to all political parties and the Kashmiris. If you need to arrive at a permanent solution, then you have to talk to all stakeholders.” (KASHMIR LIVE UPDATES)

Taking up the issue of house arrest of the Kashmiri leaders, Banerjee said that, “I have no information about Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti. I appeal to the government that they should not feel isolated. They are not terrorists. They should be released in the interest of the democratic institutions.”

We cannot support this bill. We cannot vote for this bill. They should have spoken to all political parties and the Kashmiris: @MamataOfficial #OneIndiaUnitedIndia

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— News Nation (@NewsNationTV) August 6, 2019

Banerjee is the second such major leader, who has voiced the concern over the state of Kashmiri leaders under house arrest. Earlier in the day, DMK’s Dayanidhi Maran asked Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to take stock of the situation. In fact, he also claimed that the National Conference chief has been arrested.

On Monday, soon after the Rajya Sabha scrapped the Article 370, former Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah, who were placed under house arrest, were arrested. Besides Mufti and Abdullah, Jammu and Kashmir People's Conference leaders Sajjad Lone and Imran Ansari were also arrested. The arrest of Mufti and Abdullah, two mainstream leaders of Kashmir, came hours after the Narendra Modi government striped the state of its special status. 

In an unprecedented move that is likely to spark unrest in the Valley, the Narendra Modi government on Monday scrapped part of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution that gives special status to Jammu and Kashmir. Union Home Minister Amit Shah also moved a resolution in the Lok Sabha for bringing a bill to reorganise the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh amid a walkout by opposition parties.

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