Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and PDP President Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the recent arrest of Kashmiri students in Agra for allegedly celebrating Pakistan's win against India in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup.
In her letter, Mufti sought PM Modi intervention in the matter and said that patriotism and sense of loyalty has to be cultivated with compassion and can't be forced by wielding the baton or by the barrel of a gun.
"Our brightest young people pursuing professional courses like MBBS have been targeted and slapped with anti terror laws. While within Kashmir youth are no strangers to the state excesses, three students in Agra too have been arrested and charged with sedition for the same reasons. This despite the college's own admission that they didn't engage in any activity that might be construed as anti national," she wrote. "Such punitive actions laced with contempt will only further the sense of mistrust and alienation between the younger generation and rest of the country," she added.
Mufti, in her letter, also wrote about the "alarming" situation in Jammu & Kashmir.
"I write to you with a deep sense of disappointment and concern about the alarming situation in Jammu and Kashmir. Not too long ago when you presided over an all party meeting in Delhi you expressed your intention to remove "dill ke doori" between Delhi and J&K," she wrote.
Mehbooba added that in her capacity as the President of PDP she suggested a few Confidence Building Measures that would have provided a sense of relief and breathing space to the people of J&K.
"We had been waiting for the roll out of a policy to address the hearts and minds of people especially youth. While the spree of raids, arrests, killings continue unabated the level of repression and state intolerance has touched a new low," she further said.
Read full letter here:
