Soft separatist politics making a comeback in J&K Assembly polls?

AFTER the abrogation of Article 370, the militancy-related violence in Jammu and Kashmir dropped significantly and separatist politics was pushed back with the arrest of separatist leaders and workers.

- FAYAZ WANI

However, if the current scenario is any indication, it'd seem soft separatist politics is making a comeback in the run-up to the first Assembly polls in J&K post scrapping of special status.

MP Er Rashid, who was released from over five years of detention from Tihar jail on Wednesday on interim bail by Delhi court, is the most vocal mainstream leader to talk about the Kashmir issue.

In his speeches since his release, Rashid, who was detained by NIA in a terror funding case in August 2019 and lodged in Tihar jail, has been calling for the resolution of Kashmir issue. "My struggle is not for power or limited to Article 370 but for the resolution of Kashmir issue, which is in the interest of people of the subcontinent," he said.