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Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Sanjay Singh, who is reportedly under house arrest at a circuit house in Srinagar, met former Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) chief minister Farooq Abdullah on Thursday, September 11, but their conversation took place with the AAP MP standing behind the gate of the guest house.
The AAP MP has alleged that the Srinagar Police have kept him under house arrest. Sanjay Singh wrote, "Today, there was a press conference and sit-in in Srinagar against the illegal arrest of Mehraj Malik, but the government guest house has been turned into a police camp. I am not being allowed to leave the guest house with Imran Hussain and companions."Earlier on Wednesday, Sanjay Singh met the family of Mehraj Malik in Jammu before travelling to Srinagar."
As Farooq Abdullah reached the circuit house, Sanjay Singh climbed the gates of the guest house and spoke with him, complaining “milne nahi de rahe, nikalne nahi de rahe [They are not letting me meet, and not letting me leave].”
Here’s how the exchange between Farooq Abdullah and Sanjay Singh unfolded:
Standing on the railings of the gate, Sanjay Singh asked the police personnel why they were not letting Farooq Abdullah inside the guest house.
“He is [former] MP, several times been the chief minister and I am also an MP... what is the problem? What is the crime? Why are you not allowing us to meet,” Sanjay Singh asked.
Farooq Abdullah said, “This is the situation here ... there is an elected government in place but the LG seems to own it. The nation must be made aware of this situation.”
The National Conference president said Sanjay Singh had not come to Srinagar to pelt stones or fire guns.
“A man wants to talk within the Constitution but he is not allowed to ... He [Sanjay Singh] has been my friend in Parliament and you are not permitting even to exchange courtesies. This is not your fault but of the LG,” he said.
Why was Sanjay Singh put under house arrest?
According to the reports, the police locked the gates of the circuit house as the AAP MP had plans to protest against the arrest and slapping of PSA on Mehraj Malik, the MLA from Doda.
Condemning how Sanjay Singh was stopped from holding a protest, Farooq Abdullah said it was “absolutely wrong”. Criticising Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, he said that the LG was utilising his powers for “wrong purposes”.
“This is absolutely wrong. In a democracy, protest is the right given by the Constitution of India. The sad part is that J&K is a UT, and the LG has all the powers. He is using it for the wrong purposes. Was it important to prevent Sanjay Singh from speaking? This is not an autocratic rule. There is a constitution here,” the former J&K CM said.
(With agency inputs)
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