Achi news desk-
SRINAGAR: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday said the Center would consider revoking the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act in Jammu and Kashmir.
In an interview with Gulistan News, the minister added that the government plans to withdraw troops from the Union territory and leave law and order to the Jammu and Kashmir police alone.
“We have plans to withdraw troops and leave law and order to the Jammu and Kashmir Police alone. Earlier no one trusted the Jammu and Kashmir police but today they are leading operations. We will also think about revoking AFSPA,” Shah added.
The AFSPA empowers armed forces personnel operating in troubled areas with powers to search, arrest, and open fire if they deem it necessary to “maintain public order”. A district or district is notified under the AFSPA to facilitate the operations of the armed forces.
Earlier, Shah said that the AFSPA has been abolished in 70 percent of the North Eastern districts though it is in force in Jammu and Kashmir.
Shah attacked opposition leaders Farooq Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti, saying they have no right to speak on terrorism.
“The number of false encounters that occurred during their time has never been matched by any other regime. In the last five years, not a single fake encounter has taken place. Instead, the FIRs have been lodged against the people involved in fake encounters,” the minister added.
“We will have a dialogue with the youth of Kashmir and not with the organizations that have roots in Pakistan. They are responsible for the deaths of 40,000 young people,” said Shah.
The minister said that the Modi government has banned 12 organizations for engaging in terrorist activities, designated 36 individuals as terrorists, registered more than 22 cases to prevent terrorist financing, and seized properties worth ₹150 crore. As many as 90 properties were also attached and 134 bank accounts have been frozen, he said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Kashmir Monitor staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
