JKNC leaders permitted to meet Dr Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah

Jammu and Kashmir government Saturday accorded formal sanction to a delegation of National Conference from the Jammu Province to meet party President Dr Farooq Abdullah and Vice President Omar Abdullah, who are currently under detention, in Srinagar.

A request was forwarded by the JKNC Provincial President, Devender Singh Rana, to Governor Satya Pal Malik soon after the government ended their 58-day long political detention in Jammu.

Currently, the three-time chief minister and sitting MP from Srinagar Dr. Farooq Abdullah is under house arrest at his Gupkar Road residence while his son Omar is confined to Hari Niwas, a state guesthouse-turned into a jail, barely 500 meters away. Mehbooba is in detention in a hut at Chashmeshahi near the governor’s residence Raj Bhavan.

According to a statement issued by the media cell of the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference, “The delegation led by Provincial President Devender Singh Rana and comprising former party legislators will leave by Indigo flight from Jammu tomorrow, the 6th October 2019 in the morning”.

JKNC spokesperson Madan Mantoo said that the government conveyed permission to the request made by the Provincial President DS Rana to Governor Satya Pal Malik on Thursday last evening.

He said the decision to meet Dr. Farooq Abdullah and Mr. Omar Abdullah had been taken at an emergent meeting of the senior functionaries and district presidents of the Jammu Province two days ago, soon after restrictions on the movement of Jammu based National Conference leaders had been lifted.

Dr Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and scores of National Conference leaders in the Kashmir Valley had been detained on August 4, 2019 while restrictions were imposed on the movement of prominent party leaders in the Jammu province. However, the restrictions on the Jammu based leaders were lifted on the evening of Wednesday.

Ahead of the Block Development Council polls beginning October 24, National Conference leadership in Jammu had taken stock of the prevailing political situation and had also expressed a desire to seek consultations with the top brass of the party in Kashmir valley.