Srinagar, August 24: The delegation of Opposition parties, headed by former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, wanted to aggravate the situation in Jammu & Kashmir, said Governor Satya Pal. His statement came shortly after the delegation was denied the permit to enter Srinagar on Saturday, and was turned back to New Delhi from the airport.

Justifying the administration's decision, Malik said the Opposition parties were attempting to reap political dividends from the ongoing sensitive situation prevailing in the frontier state. While contending that he had himself issued an invite to Rahul Gandhi, the Governor added that he was forced to rescind it as the Congress leader could have stoked tensions in the Valley.

"I had invited him out of goodwill but he started doing politics, it was nothing but a political action by these people. Parties should keep in mind the national interest at these times," Malik said.

The Governor asked the Gandhi scion to explain why he had left his party colleagues alone in the Parliament to oppose the changes made to J&K. He should had participated in the debate and aired his concerns before the lawmakers, he added.

"There is no need for him now, he was needed when his colleague was speaking in the Parliament. If he wants to aggravate the situation & come here to repeat the lie he told in Delhi, it is not good," Malik said, referring to Gandhi's address to the press in the national capital where he alleged human rights violation being committed in J&K.

The Opposition delegation which was turned from the Srinagar airport comprised of Rahul Gandhi, Ghulam Nabi Azad, D Raja, Sharad Yadav, Manoj Jha, Majeed Memon, and 5 other leaders. For Azad, this was the third denial in a row. The former J&K chief minister was turned away from Srinagar and Jammu airports earlier this month.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 24, 2019 06:36 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).