Indian authorities defend blocking opposition politicians from visiting Kashmir

India government has been criticised by the main opposition Congress party over August 5 move to strip Kashmir of autonomy

The region remains under strict lockdown with movement limited and many phone and internet services cut

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An Indian paramilitary soldier keeps watch from the top of a hill in Srinagar. Photo: EPA

Published: 10:52pm, 25 Aug 2019Updated: 10:58pm, 25 Aug 2019

Authorities on Sunday defended blocking opposition Indian politicians from visiting Muslim-majority Kashmir, saying it was to “avoid controversy” weeks after stripping the restive region of its autonomy and imposing a major clampdown.

India’s Hindu-nationalist government has been criticised by the main opposition Congress party over the contentious move on August 5 that brings Kashmir – which has waged an armed rebellion against Indian control since 1989 – under its direct rule.

The region remains under strict lockdown with movement limited and many phone and internet services cut, although authorities say they have been easing restrictions gradually.

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, still a key figure in India as a scion of the powerful Nehru-Gandhi political dynasty, was earlier invited by local governor Satya Pal Malik to visit Kashmir.

But video released by Congress showed Gandhi questioning officials about why he was stopped from entering Kashmir’s main city of Srinagar at the airport on Saturday.

“The governor has said I’m invited. He has invited me so I have come but you’re saying I can’t go,” he said. “And government is saying everything is OK, everything is normal. So if everything is normal, why are we not allowed out? It is a bit surprising.”

Regional police chief Dilbagh Singh said police supported the decision.

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