BJP Leader Accused of Intimidating Pahari Muslims Faces Calls for Imprisonment

PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti demands imprisonment under UAPA for BJP spokesperson Satish Bhargav for allegedly threatening Pahari Muslims in Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat. The BJP has expelled Bhargav for "hate speech." The PDP has filed a complaint against the BJP for "intimidation tactics." Bhargav should be sent to Tihar jail, says Mufti.

PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday said the BJP leader who allegedly threatened Pahari Muslims in Anantnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha seat in Jammu and Kashmir should be booked under the UAPA and sent to jail.

The BJP on Tuesday expelled Poonch district spokesperson Satish Bhargav for “hate speech” and “using unparliamentary language” during an election meeting in Poonch district.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday filed a complaint against the BJP for “intimidation tactics” to force the people to vote for the Apni Party candidate.

Talking to reporters here, Mufti said, Bhargav should be booked under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and sent to Delhi's Tihar jail.

''This is their real face... If someone else had said the same thing, he would have already been in Tihar jail,'' Mufti, the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister said.

Poonch district is part of the Anantnag-Rajouri parliamentary constituency where the elections were rescheduled for May 25 by the Election Commission.

PDP president Mufti and National Conference leader Mian Altaf are in a direct contest from the constituency. Prominent among 19 other candidates in the fray are Mohammad Saleem Parray of the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) and J&K Apni Party leader Zafar Iqbal Khan Manhas.