Srinagar: Chairman of Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), Muhammad Yasin Malik was arrested by police Tuesday from JKLF office Abi-Guzar Srinagar. In a statement issued to , JKLF spokesman said that a large contingent of police cordoned JKLF office at Abi-Guzar Tuesday afternoon and arrested him.
The statement reads that Malik has been taken into custody in wake of coming Municipal elections. It added that Malik has been shifted to Kothi-bagh Police station.Before being detained, Malik talked to media person present outside the JKLF office and said that “in democracy people are given space to expresses their views.”
“Participation or boycotting elections is also a democratic right but biggest democracy is practicing a new kind of democracy in Jammu Kashmir wherein no peaceful political dissent is allowed and political leaders and activists are put behind the bars,” he said.He said that a military and police operation has been launched in Jammu Kashmir under the garb of Municipality and Panchayat elections. “Many leaders and activists from joint resistance leadership have been arrested, slapped with PSA and shifted to jails outside Kashmir,” he said.
“Also hundreds of youth have also been detained and are languishing in jails and police stations across the valley. Police and military operation is being named as empowering common masses and strengthening of democracy which is actually ridiculous and absurd,” he said. Terming all election as ‘detrimental’ to the cause and interests of the people of Jammu Kashmir, Malik said that “Indian has always portrayed these elections as being a vote in favor of its illegal occupation on Kashmir. This election process, be it for assembly, Indian parliament, municipality or Panchayats is actually responsible for our miseries as assemblies and forums created by this process formulate and implement laws to put curbs on people, inflict more and more hardships on them and prolong our slavery.”
He said that “election process is responsible for strengthening the military occupation, providing military and forces huge powers to kill, jail, torture and blind people with impunity.” “All who participate or vote in these elections are actually damaging the interests of Kashmiris and playing as collaborators of India and it is the duty of every Kashmiri to stand firm against aggression, stay away from this process and boycott these elections with passion and valor,” he said.
While condemning what he termed as ‘the ongoing and unrelenting oppression’ in Kashmir Malik said that “on one hand there are talks of so-called democracy, empowerment of masses in the name of Panchayat and Municipality elections and on other hand brutal killings of Kashmiris, CASO and crackdowns, spree of arrests, slapping PSA on political activists and shifting them to jails outside Kashmir and choking every peaceful dissent by military and police might has been enhanced by present ruling regime in Jammu Kashmir.”
“How can India and its local supporters claim democracy and non-violence when they have let loose a reign of terror against political dissent and peaceful resistance,” he said. Malik said that “innocent killings are going on, beating and humiliating people under the garb of CASO has been expedited, use of black law PSA to cage down political dissent is at its peak and yet oppressors claim to be political and democrats.”
“Irony is that oppression is going on in the name of democracy, suppressing peoples voices is on in the name of empowering people through municipality and Panchayats,” added JKLF chief.“This actually is state terrorism under the garb of democracy and the perpetuators of this ugly politics shall know that their political gimmicks and two-faced acts cannot change the reality on ground and will never succeed in weakening people’s resistance against illegal occupation in Jammu Kashmir,” he added.
