The J&K Assembly, now in its Budget Session in winter capital Jammu, was adjourned twice on Monday as mainstream Opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) created ruckus over the hanging of Parliament attack convict Muhammad Afzal Guru and handing his mortal remains to his family and demanded more discussion on the issue.
Its president Mehbooba Mufti sought to hold chief minister Omar Abdullah accountable for the state’s government’s “failure and inability” to protect rights of Guru who was a citizen of Jammu and Kashmir and was hanged by “depriving him of his proper legal rights.” She also reiterated Guru was denied his legal right and “hanged secretly in unholy manner”.
The CM hit back by accusing the PDP of “playing politics on blood and shedding crocodile tears” over the Guru’s execution.
He said, “They (PDP leaders) only want to utilise such incidents for their vested interests otherwise they do not have any concern either for the family of Afzal Guru or the people of the state.”
Mr Abdullah also said, “You want to play dirty politics over blood and shed crocodile tears to astray people otherwise your whole record is before the public”.
He pointed out that other than the statement issued by former chief minister and PDP patron Mufti Muhammad Sayeed on the issue of returning Guru’s remains a few days ago, “he never talked about this issue right from 2006 when the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence to Guru up to 2013.” The CM sought to clear doubts in the minds of people that it (Guru’s hanging) was selective and political and said that the course of action regarding similar cases would determine it. “Let us wait and watch what action is being taken against others convicted in similar cases”, he added and lambasted PDP and separatists for “doing politics on human blood.”
In his reply, the chief minister said, “Yes, my government imposed restrictions, people had to face difficulties, newspapers did not hit stalls but we saved the bloodshed and safeguarded the lives which was of prime concern and main objective before me after the hanging of Afzal Guru.”
He reiterated that it was at around 8 pm on February 8 that he was informed by the MHA that the mercy petition moved by the family of Guru had been rejected by the President and the government had decided to hang him next morning.