November 14, 2020 4:36:59 am
Altaf Ahmad Wani.
Former National Congress (NC) MLA Altaf Ahmad Wani, aka Kalloo, was prevented Thursday night from flying to Dubai from Delhi International Airport, and was informed by immigration officials that Kashmiri politicians could not fly abroad. .
Following the episode, sources said, the general order, issued as a result of the repeal of article 370 in August 2019, is being reviewed by the government. From now on, Kashmiri politicians will not be prevented from flying abroad unless there is some specific input on their possible involvement in any anti-India activity there, the sources added.
Wani, who is a former member of the Pahalgham community, was booked on a Vistara flight to Dubai along with members of his family, and was detained at immigration just before he left the Delhi airport at around 8pm. .
The sources said that the airport authorities informed him of an order prohibiting J&K politicians from traveling outside the country and advised him to obtain special permission from the Srinagar CID, even when they allowed his family members to take the flight.
Wani, who was among the politicians detained on August 4, 2019, before the special status for Jammu and Kashmir was lifted, told The Indian Express: “After checking in, my family and I were going through immigration when they took me out. to the side and asked to wait in a room. “He said that immigration officials told him after a while that they had asked permission from the CID office in Srinagar to allow him to take the flight.” I think the permission did not arrive, the officials They cited a technicality and said that I can’t fly out of the country. Later, some J&K police officers intervened and allowed me to leave the airport. “
An Interior Ministry official told The Indian Express: “The matter is being resolved. The blanket travel ban for Kashmiri politicians is also under review. It came about in the wake of Shah Faesal trying to fly to Turkey right after the August 5 decision. Unfortunately, the order has not been reviewed by UT management since then. “
Faesal had been detained by immigration authorities on August 14, 2019, before taking a flight to Istanbul from Delhi. The reason given was “perception of a threat to public order due to their activities,” according to a J&K management report. He was later turned over to the J&K Police, who detained him under Section 107 of the CrPC, followed by the strict Public Safety Act.
A request was then sent to immigration authorities not to allow any Kashmiri politicians, many of whom spent months in detention, to fly abroad. Wani himself was released after six months, in February.
Still in Delhi, the North Carolina leader said he had had no problem getting a visa and had flown to Delhi from Srinagar “without any red flags at the airport.” “I was traveling to Dubai for my niece’s engagement on Saturday … I wish they had relayed this to me before leaving Srinagar because this has caused my family unnecessary distress,” Wani said.
© The Indian Express (P) Ltd
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