‘Country’s misfortune’: Congress, Left parties condemn Farooq Abdullah’s detention under PSA

NEW DELHI: Several opposition parties on Monday condemned the detention of former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah under the stringent Public Safety Act.
Reacting to the Centre's move, the Congress said injustice has been done and it's the country's "misfortune" that leaders who fought for its unity are behind the bars.
The party said it stands in solidarity with Abdullah and if there is "no militancy today" in the state, it was because of the Congress, the National Conference and the PDP, and not the BJP.
The Left parties also slammed the government over the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister's detention in the valley and said instead of trying to find a solution to the crisis, it was being aggravated.
Congress Rajya Sabha MP and leader of the opposition in Upper House Ghulam Nabi Azad said, "I strongly condemn it. It is most unfortunate that a (former) chief minister of one of the oldest political parties in Kashmir (has been detained).
"Each chief minister and each political party, be it the Congress, the National Conference or the Peoples Democratic Party, in Jammu and Kashmir have tried their level best to fight militancy. If there is no militancy today, it is because of these political parties and not the BJP," he told reporters.
If the leaders who fought against militancy and for the unity and integrity of the country are put behind bars under the PSA, it is a "misfortune" of the country, Azad said.
Communist Party of India (CPI) general secretary D Raja also slammed the government and said: "The Left parties have been demanding that all the leaders detained in the wake of the abrogation of Article 370 should be released so that the government can engage with them and find a solution. Instead of doing that, the government has now detained a senior leader under a draconian law and aggravated the situation there."
He also alleged that the PSA was slapped on Abdullah in an "arbitrary and brazen manner".
CPM leader Mohammed Salim accused Union home minister Amit Shah of lying on the floor of Parliament over the issue of Abdullah's detention.
In a tweet, he attached a video grab of Shah in Parliament last month, in which the home minister said Abdullah was neither detained nor arrested.
"Amit Shah lied on the floor of the parliament claiming that Farooq Abdullah didn't come to Lok Sabha on his own will but today we all know that Mr Abdullah had been under detention since 4 August, under the draconian PSA. Does India's Home Minister have any credibility today?", the Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP tweeted.

Amit Shah lied on the floor of the parliament claiOriginal Article