Srinagar, August 14: Shah Faesal, the IAS officer who quit the bureaucracy to launch his own political party in Jammu & Kashmir last year, was arrested at the Delhi airport on Monday. He was taken into custody shortly before his scheduled departure onboard a flight to Turkey's Istanbul. Faesal was subsequently sent to Kashmir where he has been placed under house arrest at his Srinagar-based home.
Faesal is the latest among Kashmiri politicians who have faced a crackdown following the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu & Kashmir. Earlier, former chief ministers Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti were arrested, whereas, veteran politician Farooq Abdullah was allegedly placed under house arrest. Article 370: Jammu Completely Freed of Restrictions, Curbs to Remain in Kashmir, Says ADGP Munir Khan
Faesal, who heads the Jammu Kashmir People's Movement (JKPM) party, avoided a crackdown so far as he, along with his party's co-founder Shehla Rashid, were based in Delhi ahead of the clampdown in the Valley.
Marking his strong disapproval of the Narendra Modi government's move, Faesal, in a series of tweets, has claimed that the space for mainstream politicians in the Valley ceases to exist.
"Kashmir will need a long, sustained, non-violent political mass movement for restoration of the political rights. Abolition of Article 370 has finished the mainstream. Constitutionalists are gone. So you can either be a stooge or a separatist now. No shades of grey," the 35-year-old had said in a recent tweet.
"Kashmiris across the world are mourning the illegal annexation of their land. There shall be no Eid till everything that has been stolen and snatched since 1947 is returned back. No Eid till the last bit of insult is avenged and undone," he had further said.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 14, 2019 03:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).