Peoples Democratic Party President Mehbooba Mufti has criticized the Bharatiya Janata Party, saying that it is using passports as weapons and imposing unlawful travel bans to intimidate and punish its opponents.
According to Kashmir Media Service, Mufti’s remarks follow the deportation of a Kashmiri-origin Pundit woman, Nitasha Kaul, a professor at the University of Westminster, UK, who was denied entry at Bengaluru airport, last day.
Kaul, a Kashmiri Pandit academic based in London, shared her ordeal on X, stating that she received no explanation from immigration officials and no prior notice from the Indian government about her entry denial.
Mehbooba Mufti expressed solidarity with Kaul, referencing similar cases such as Professor Ashok Swain’s OCI card cancellation and Aatish Taseer’s Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) card status revocation. Swain, critical of the Modi-led government, had his OCI card cancelled, while Taseer faced repercussions after criticizing Prime Minister Modi in a Time Magazine article.
These incidents raise concerns about the BJP’s alleged misuse of travel documents to silence dissenting voices.—KMS
