Jammu, 20 July: J&K police on Sunday detained several senior Congress leaders, including Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief Tariq Hameed Karra and party general secretary G A Mir, as they attempted to march towards Raj Bhawan demanding restoration of statehood.
The protest—part of the Congress-led campaign titled Hamari Riyasat Hamara Haq—was blocked near Shaheedi Chowk, where hundreds of party activists had gathered. The plan was to submit a memorandum to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, reiterating their long-standing demand for statehood.
This was the second day in a row that police cracked down on Congress demonstrations. On Saturday, a similar rally was stopped in Srinagar.
Addressing the media before his detention, Karra criticised the administration for “suppressing democratic voices.”
“By this action, they showed their frustration and their mentality that they do not believe in a democratic system and have no respect for people’s voice,” he said.
He added that the protest was entirely peaceful and aimed at delivering a memorandum to the Prime Minister through the LG.
“We were not on the streets to create unrest. We were exercising our democratic right to demand what is just and constitutional,” Karra said.
He warned that such police actions would not deter the party.
“The Congress will not be cowed down by such actions, but will further strengthen our resolve to fight for our rights,” he asserted.
Despite repeated curbs in Jammu and Srinagar, the Congress has announced that it will go ahead with its ‘Delhi Challo’ call and attempt to surround Parliament on Monday, the opening day of the Monsoon Session.
“We will try to wake up this deaf, blind and handicapped government so that they can make Jammu and Kashmir a state as soon as possible,” Karra said, adding that the entire INDIA bloc stood in solidarity with this demand.
Echoing similar sentiments, senior leader G A Mir said the Prime Minister had made a commitment to restore statehood, which remains unfulfilled.
“It has been 10 months since the general elections, but there has been no move on statehood. Modi should fulfil his own promise,” Mir said.
AICC secretary Shahnawaz Choudhary, also detained, said, “There is no justification for such an action against our peaceful rally. We will continue our struggle for the restoration of statehood.”
The BJP-led Centre had revoked J&K’s special status under Article 370 in August 2019 and bifurcated the state into two Union Territories. While the government has assured the eventual restoration of statehood, no timeline has been formally announced.
