Fake enounters being taken seriously because of demand for AFSPA revocation, says Omar

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday said it was due to his demand for revocation of AFSPA that fake encounters and killings like Machil and Nowgam were taken “a lot more seriously” even as he asserted to continue his fight against the controversial Act. “I have seen two major developments for which I am actually pretty reassured. One is that fake encounters and killings like Machil and Nowgam have now started to be taken a lot more seriously and justice is at least in the process of being done, which was not the case before I took up this issue of AFSPA. [caption id=“attachment_1835891” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Omar Abdullah. AFP[/caption] “So, that for me is some cause of satisfaction. The fact is that we would continue to fight for the revocation of AFSPA, there are no two ways about that,” Omar told reporters here on the sidelines of a prayer meet at the mausoleum of his grandfather and former CM Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah on his birth anniversary. The CM said the fact that the BJP was talking about creating conducive conditions for the Act to go led him to believe that he was “right”. “More importantly, today even the BJP is talking about the revocation of AFSPA. The BJP vice-president in-charge Jammu and Kashmir has said that the BJP will also create conditions conducive for (revocation of) AFSPA. That is what I have been saying. “I have been saying that we have created those conditions. Now the BJP is toeing my line as well. So, I think, both these things led me to believe that I was right to raise this issue,” he said. The BJP had said on 1 December that if elected to power in the state, the party would create an atmosphere where a “stringent” law like the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) would not be required. “Our understanding is that if BJP comes to power in the state, there would not be any need of such a law (AFSPA). We will create such an atmosphere where there would be no fear and everything will move forward peacefully and there would be no need of a stringent law,” BJP leader and party in-charge of Kashmir affairs Ramesh Arora had said. Omar said it was “unfortunate” that because of some “forces” at the Centre he was not able to take the issue of AFSPA to “its logical conclusion”. “It is unfortunate that due to various forces at the Centre – both in the UPA and the NDA – I was not able to take it to the logical conclusion, but that won’t stop me from trying,” he said. PTI