'Tyranny Of Unelected': Omar Abdullah Quotes Arun Jaitley Slamming 'Locking-Up' Of Leaders On 'Martyrs' Day' In Kashmir

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah alleged that the "unelected nominees of New Delhi locked up the elected representatives" of the people of Jammu and Kashmir after prominent leaders from ruling and opposition parties were not allowed to leave their houses to prevent them from visiting the graveyard of 1931 martyrs here.

The detentions, which were not officially confirmed by police or the administration, were widely reported by leaders who posted videos and pictures showing their gates locked or blocked by security personnel to stop them from going to the Naqshband Sahib graveyard near Nowhatta in downtown Srinagar to pay tributes on Martyrs' Day.

In a post on X, the Jammu and Kashmir chief minister likened the July 13, 1931 incident to the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, saying, "the people who laid down their lives did so against the British... What a shame that true heroes who fought against British rule... are today projected as villains."

The Srinagar district administration had denied permission to all applicants, including the ruling National Conference leaders, to visit the graveyard. On Sunday, all roads leading to the area located downtown were barricaded with a heavy presence of police personnel.

Also Read | 'Our Jallianwala Bagh': Omar Abdullah slams curbs on July 13 Martyrs' Day

Abdullah criticised the house detentions, and said "in a blatantly undemocratic move, homes have been locked from the outside, police and central forces deployed as jailers... All to stop people from visiting a historically important graveyard."

'Democracy in J&K is a tyranny of the unelected'

He also quoted former Finance Minister late Arun Jaitley . "To borrow from the late Arun Jaitley Sb - Democracy in J&K is a tyranny of the unelected. To put it in terms you will all understand today the unelected nominees of New Delhi locked up the elected representatives of the people of J&K," the chief minister said.

"We may be denied the opportunity to visit their graves today, but we will not forget their sacrifices".

July 13 used to be a public holiday in Jammu and Kashmir before the reorganisation of the erstwhile state into two Union territories after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019. The administration dropped the day from the list of gazetted holidays in 2020.

The day used to be observed as Martyrs' Day to commemorate the sacrifice of 22 people who led an uprising against the 'autocratic' rule of Maharaja Hari Singh in 1931, which eventually forced the Maharaja to hold the first assembly elections in the history ofJammu and Kashmir.

On the day, mainstream political leaders used to visit the "Martyrs' graveyard" to pay homage to the Kashmiris who fell to the bullets of the forces during the protest.

Srinagar Police issued a public advisory and posted on its handle on X on Saturday that the "District Administration Srinagar has denied permission to all applicants intending to proceed towards Khawaja Bazar, Nowhatta on 13th July 2025 (Sunday)." The district magistrate also rejected the ruling National Conference's plea seeking permission for NC president Farooq Abdullah and other senior functionaries to visit the graveyard.

PDP President Mehbooba Mufti posted pictures of her main door locked and said,“When you lay siege to the Martyrs' Graveyard, lock people in their homes... it speaks volumes.”

Also Read | Omar Abdullah claims locals were 'forced to help terrorists' after NIA arrests

She argued that a genuine end to mistrust between Delhi and Kashmir would only happen when India accepts Kashmiri "martyrs" as their own.

'Dil ki doori'

"The day you accept our heroes as your own just as Kashmiris have embraced yours, from Mahatma Gandhi to Bhagat Singh , that day, as Prime Minister Modi once said, the 'dil ki doori' (distance of hearts) will truly end," she said in a post on X.

Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Chaudhary, who was in Jammu, said that his official residence in Kashmir was also locked by the administration.

"This is our condition. Locking a deputy chief minister, ministers and MLAs is a threat to democracy," he said and demanded restoration of statehood to J-K.

Provocative politics: BJP

Leader of Opposition in Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Sunil Sharma dubbed the slain protesters as 'traitors' and said the ruling party is trying to indulge in 'provocative politics' and revive a separatist sentiment which was long buried following abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.

"We consider them as traitors as I have made it clear on the floor of the assembly," the BJP leader said.

Democracy in J&K is a tyranny of the unelected.

"National Conference is trying to indulge in provocative politics in the name of these traitors, terrorists, separatists and so-called political prisoners to revive the sentiment (of separatism). They are having a misconception but this will never happen again,” he told reporters.

(With agency inputs)

MENAFN13072025007365015876ID1109795213