The President of National Conference in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Farooq Abdullah, has condemned the use of brute force by Indian police on the protesters, who were demanding the closure of Sarore toll plaza on the Jammu-Pathankot Highway in Samba district.
Farooq Abdullah in a statement issued in Srinagar expressed concern over the police action. He said, the protesters were raising their voices against the toll collection at Lakhanpur, a practice that stands in blatant disregard of both standing guidelines and the assurances given by the Indian government.
“There is no justification for taxing people when the roads are in shambles and the damaged bridge is causing immeasurable inconvenience. No reach out was made to the protestors, contrarily they were roughed up and arrested. The police action and the attitude of the administration is highly condemnable. I implore the administration to release the youth immediately and address their concerns humanely,” he said.
Farooq Abdullah also demanded immediate abolishment of the newly imposed Property Tax as well as the illegal toll plaza at Sarore. He main-tained that the presence of such a toll plaza is causing undue financial burden on the citizens.—KMS
