JK CM must urgently visit Doda to take stock of ground situation: Mehbooba

Srinagar, Sep 11 (PTI) PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday said Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah must urgently visit Doda for a first-hand assessment of the situation amidst reports of an internet blackout in the hill district.

Tension prevailed in Doda and adjoining areas on Thursday following the detention of over 80 people and violent clashes between protesters and security forces after the arrest of AAP MLA Mehraj Malik under the stringent Public Safety Act (PSA).

Prohibitory orders remained in force for the third consecutive day in the district, where mobile internet and WiFi services have been suspended as a precautionary measure.

"The Chief Minister @OmarAbdullah must urgently visit Doda to assess the ground situation firsthand and take immediate steps to provide relief to the people," Mufti said in a post on X.

She said news reports about the internet blackout and other measures taken by the law and order machinery are disturbing.

"News from Doda is deeply disturbing. An internet blackout has been imposed, schools have been shut and a curfew enforced. Alarming reports suggest that roads are being deliberately blocked, depriving people of their fundamental right to movement. This heavy-handed bureaucratic response is not just authoritarian, it strikes at the very core of democratic values," she said.

Malik, who won the Doda seat in the 2024 assembly elections by over 4,500 votes, was detained on Monday under the PSA for allegedly disturbing public order, officials said. He was subsequently lodged in the Kathua district jail.

This is the first time a sitting MLA in Jammu and Kashmir has been taken into custody under the stringent law, which allows detention without charge or trial for up to two years in some cases. PTI MIJ DIV DIV