New Delhi: Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who has been in detention since August 5 last year when the Centre announced the abrogation of Article 370, on Wednesday, ‘liked’ a tweet for the first time in seven months as internet services were finally fully restored and ban on social media lifted in the Valley.Omar, the vice president of the National Conference (NC), was last month slapped with the Public Safety Act (PSA). This, however, was challenged by his sister Sara, the wife of Rajasthan deputy CM Sachin Pilot, in the Supreme Court, which will take up the matter today.
On Wednesday, as internet services were restored in the region, Omar liked a tweet by the Associated Press which was on a story of the US airstrike on Taliban, which was carried out just days after the two sides signed a historic peace deal.
Omar, however, chose not to send out any tweet. His last tweets, posted on August 5 before he was detained, called for ‘peace and calm’ in the Valley.
Along with Omar, two other former Chief Ministers, his father and NC chief Farooq Abdullah and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti, were put under detention. While Farooq was slapped with PSA last September, Mufti was booked along with Omar.
On Wednesday, her daughter Iltija, who has been handling her Twitter account, tweeted: “Seems like the J&K administration finally realised the futility of ban on social media since Kashmiris circumvented it through VPNs. It simply became a cat and mouse chase where the Kashmiris outwitted the state apparatus i.e. the Big Brother.” |
