Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said on Saturday the Centre should have taken the initiative to send a delegation of Opposition leaders to Jammu and Kashmir to check the facts on the ground and build public confidence in the aftermath of the abrogation of the special status. He said the Opposition parties could have then apprised the country of the situation in the Kashmir Valley.
Criticising the Union government’s decision to stop the Opposition leaders at Srinagar airport and send them back within a few hours, Mr. Gehlot said had they been allowed to visit the city and talk to the locals, it would have sent a signal that democracy still prevailed there.
Talking to reporters outside the State Assembly here, Mr. Gehlot said in a similar situation, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had sent Opposition leaders to different countries after the 1971 war to explain India’s stand. “This is the usual norm... The government facilitates the movement of Opposition leaders to get to the truth. Stopping them cannot be justified in any manner.”
The Chief Minister said the people in J&K had been forced to stay behind closed doors for about 20 days with no access to telephone, mobile and Internet. “The government cannot restrict the movement of citizens in this manner. They have a right to liberty under the Constitution.”
Mr. Gehlot said the BJP had come to power by misleading the people on patriotism by arousing their religious sentiments. “They have created an atmosphere as if they alone are patriots. They will be exposed when the people realise their hollow claims and understand the truth,” he said.
