Demanding the release of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader and former Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, former Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said India’s democracy is damaged when political leaders are ‘illegally’ detained.
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The PDP leader has been in detention under the Public Safety Act (PSA) since J&K’s special status under Article 370 was removed last August and the State was bifurcated into the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
“India’s democracy is damaged when GOI illegally detains political leaders. It’s high time Mehbooba Mufti is released,” Mr. Gandhi said on Twitter.
Last Friday, the J&K administration extended her detention under the PSA by another three months.
An abuse of law: Chidambaram
In a series of tweets on Saturday, Mr. Chidambaram called the extension an abuse of law and an assault on the Constitutional rights guaranteed to every citizen.
How could a 61-year-old former Chief Minister, a protected person under security guard round the clock, be a threat to public safety, Mr. Chidambaram asked.
“She rightly rejected the offer to release her on conditions which any self-respecting political leader would refuse. One of the reasons given for her detention — the colour of her party’s flag — was laughable,” he said.
