After Mehbooba, JKPC alleges Sajad Lone was "manhandled" by J&K Police; releases statement

Sajad Lone's Jammu & Kashmir People's Conference in a statement raised allegations of 'manhandling' of their party's chief in the hands of security officials in the valley on Sunday. J&K People's Conference claimed that on the pretext of security checking, Sajad Lone was "manhandled and misbehaved" while the political detainees were being shifted to the MLA Hostel. 

The statement condemning the "reprehensible treatment" further said that the incident even led to a "heated exchange of words" wherein some members exchanged "physical blows."

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Here's the statement: 

Today, while shifting the detained political leaders to MLA hostel, the police on the pretext of security checking, manhandled and misbehaved with Peoples Conference Chairman and former Minster Sajad Lone Sahib. This led to a heated exchange of words in which some of the members also exchanged physical blows. 

Peoples Conference strongly condemns this reprehensible treatment of PC Chairman Sajad Lone Sahib. This attitude of the local police towards former democratically elected representatives of the people of Kashmir is a brazen display of arrogance and contempt for the rule of law.

Earlier on Sunday, a similar allegation was raised by former J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, however, the claims were rebutted by the J&K Police. The daughter of the former Chief Minister of J&K, through her mother's Twitter handle, asserted that JKPC chief Sajad Lone, PDP leader Waheed Para, and former IAS officer Shah Faesal were manhandled by the Police on Sunday, while they were moved to another government facility because of the dropping temperature in the valley. 

In retaliation to the charges leveled by Mufti's daughter, J&K Police clarified that "no such incident has taken place." Further adding that mandatory security drills were followed as a prerequisite for lodgment.

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J&K Detention 

Mainstream J&K politicians, including three former chief ministers of the state-- Mehbooba Mufti, Omar Abdullah and Farooq Abdullah have been placed under detention since the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5 citing 'security concerns.' Mufti and Omar Abdullah are under section 107 of the Criminal Procedure Code. Meanwhile, the Centre slapped Public Safety Act (PSA) in September. While Mehbooba Mufti has been moved to a detention Centre, both 83-year-old Farooq and Omar Abdullah have preferred to stay in their Srinagar residences.

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