J&K: Mehbooba urges police to take action over attacks on Christian prayer meetings

Jammu, Oct 31 (PTI) PDP president Mehbooba Mufti expressed concern on Friday over recent attacks on Christian prayer meetings in Jammu and Kashmir, including one such incident in Kathua, and urged police to take immediate action to ensure communal harmony ahead of the Christmas season.

She said action should be taken "before fear becomes the new normal".

"I urge the authorities, especially the Jammu and Kashmir Police, to take immediate action as Christmas is approaching -- before fear becomes the new normal," Mufti said after meeting a delegation of Christian community members during her daylong visit to Jammu.

The former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister later posted on X that the members of the delegation expressed "deep concern over recent attacks on prayer meetings, including one at Rajbagh, Kathua".

"Their anguish highlights the growing intolerance and government indifference toward minorities," she said in her post, adding that the delegation also raised the issue of an unused community centre in the Christian colony here, despite its completion.

During her visit, Mufti also met delegations from different sections of the society, including students and casual labourers. She interacted with students from various colleges and the Jammu University, calling it "a wonderful session where the new generation voiced the future and leadership listened with purpose".

A delegation of the Casual Labourers United Front also met the People's Democratic Party (PDP) chief to highlight issues, such as long-pending regularisation, delay in wages and job insecurity.

Mufti assured them that her party would continue to raise their concerns. "The rights and dignity of workers must be protected. The PDP will persistently advocate for their genuine demands both within and outside the Assembly," she said. PTI AB RC