RJD slams Centre over house arrest of J-K leaders

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Manoj Jha on Monday slammed the Centre stating that house arresting of political leaders in Jammu and Kashmir is a very serious issue and raised concerns over the government claims that situation in the region is normal.

"This is a very serious issue. When the Jammu and Kashmir MPs were retiring recently, we discussed a lot of things in the Parliament. How do we look at Kashmir? I have heard that a delegation is about to come. Before that, you are house arresting the public representatives? What type of democracy is this? You say that situation in Kashmir is normal, how is this normal? There is a big difference between what is said and being done. Jammu and Kashmir is not merely a piece of land. Humans live there. Take decisions according to the issues that concern their life," Jha told ANI. '

His statement comes after former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir and National Conference (NC) leader Omar Abdullah on Sunday claimed that he and his family, including his father and party supremo Farooq Abdullah, were "locked up" in their home by authorities. Omar also posted pictures showing police vehicles parked outside his residence in Srinagar alongside his tweet.

While talking about the promises made by Rahul Gandhi to hike wages of tea workers in Assam Jha said, "I think that such issues should be raised during the elections. They should not be hypothetical. Bihar's opposition leader Tejashwi Yadav has done that. Elections should be fought on issues of public concern. It should be on dawai, kamai, sinchai, and sunwai."

Ahead of Assembly polls in Assam, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi attacked the Central government, saying Assam's tea garden workers have been getting Rs 167 per day wage while traders in Gujarat own tea gardens. He promised to give Rs 365 per day wages to the tea workers of Assam if voted to power.

Speaking on the statement made by Rahul Gandhi on Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) during his Assam rally, Jha said "Apart from Gandhi, leaders from different states have said the same thing on the CAA. Even though Nitish Kumar is in coalition with the BJP, he had to pass a resolution against it under the pressure of Mahagathbandhan. This law was passed in a hurry without any consultation and was bulldozed due to the majority of the BJP. This is not how decisions are taken for the public. Rahul's statement should be viewed in this perspective."

Talking about the ongoing tensions between India and China, the RJD leader said "We will wait till the talks conclude with China. But, an important leader has raised concerns regarding India stepping back but not China. There should be a detailed discussion on this in Parliament. Governments come and go but there should be no compromise with the country."

Former Defence Minister and Congress leader AK Antony on Sunday had said that the country is facing a two-front war with both Pakistan and China. He said that China is becoming more belligerent by building infrastructure and military mobilisation across the India-China border mainly from Eastern Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh, and Sikkim. He also said that the Modi government is not giving proper priority to national security.

(ANI)

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