Opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) patron and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed Sunday welcomed the recommendations of justice J S Verma about securing the dignity of women in conflict areas.
Addressing a public meeting in RS Pura, Jammu he said, “The amendments proposed by justice Verma in Armed Forces Special Powers Acts (AFSPA) represent the minimum that is needed to establish the rule of law in J&K that has witnessed a serious deficit in governance, civil liberties and democratic process.”
“It is unfortunate that a state that acceded to India for its democratic system is reduced to fight even for basic democratic rights of legal remedies that are available to rest of the country and guaranteed by its constitution,” he said.
“It is true for some time the security forces needed the cover of special laws but it cannot be said that those laws could become a permanent feature of our legal system,” he added.
The PDP patron demanded revocation of the AFSPA that takes away the jurisdiction of civil courts “in view of the vastly changed situation that will need return to normal application of laws.”
He said though justice Verma’s recommendations have been made in the context of the dignity of women only and “these add a prestigious and highly respected judicial view to the discourse on the need to restore full civil liberties in J&K.”
Mufti said J&K people have always given full support to democratic system “but unfortunately it has not met with adequate response from the powers that be.”
“In spite of having repeatedly participated in various elections after 2002 there has been no relief for the people in terms of a return to a full democratic system,” Mufti said.
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