CPI-M's KT Jaleel faces flak over 'Pakistan Occupied Kashmir is Azad Kashmir' shocker

Former minister and Kerala MLA KT Jaleel has sparked a controversy over his Facebook post on Kashmir calling 'part of Kashmir annexed to Pakistan was known as Azad Kashmir.'

Following his visit to Kashmir, former Kerala Minister KT Jaleel on Friday stirred a massive controversy through a Facebook post where he criticised the abrogation of Article 370, while praising Pakistan-occupied territories of the Valley as truly being free. 

"The part of Kashmir annexed to Pakistan was known as 'Azad Kashmir'," wrote the CPI-M leader in a lengthy post, adding that the people of the Valley have forgotten to laugh as Indian Army soldiers are everywhere in J&K.

"Kashmir's face is not bright enough. Soldiers with guns everywhere. Policemen also have guns slung over their shoulders. Army green has been the colour of Kashmir for decades. Armed soldiers can be seen every hundred meters along the road. There was no sadness on the faces of the common people. It seems that Kashmiris have become a people who have forgotten to laugh. Army trucks and military presence seem to be a part of daily life for Kashmiris. All political leaders are under house arrest. Political activity has stopped for months. There is a kind of indifference lurking in every nook and cranny," wrote KT Jaleel in the FB post.

Referring to the abrogation of Article 370, Jaleel added, "The anger on the second Modi government for cutting Kashmir into three can be read from the expression of the people. The feeling of alienation is deeply rooted in the Kashmiri heart. The central government should make systematic efforts to change it. We don't want wastelands. The goal should be Kashmir, where the soil and mind are close to the chest."

Opposition leaders call for sedition charges to be levelled against KT Jaleel

Opposition leaders have slammed the former Kerala Minister and have called for sedition charges to be levelled against KT Jaleel for the anti-India FB post. BJP Kerala leader Sandeep Varier said, "I don't feel shocked because he was a former member of SIMI. He then joined Muslim League, and from there, he joined the Left party, so this is not shocking for any Keralite. He will definitely support Pakistan, and he will call 'Azad Kashmir'."

"But the most unfortunate thing is when the Indian Parliament unanimously adopted a resolution in 1994 that Pak-occupied Kashmir is an integral part of India and it should be brought back, how can a representative of the Kerala Assembly and a former minister take such stand? He should be booked under UAPA and should be arrested immediately," Varier added.

"This is a great insult to our forces; undermines Bharat"

BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said, "The mindset of the Left party, they were the ones who opposed to the removal or abrogation of Article 370 and today they are peddling the same narrative of Pakistan, which they did even at the time of the surgical striker and at the time of Pulwama. This is the greatest insult to our forces. This is the greatest insult for those who sacrificed their lives for India. This is actually trying to justify the Pakistani position."

"The very fact that he has changed the post from Azad Kashmir to PoK. So he had admitted that he had made this kind of error or it was done deliberately. Perhaps deliberately because if you see his background. This is not the first instance. He has done things which would not be done by any patriot. The question is how long will Mr. Pinarayi Vijayan tolerate this kind of person with such a background, who time and again undermines Bharat. This undermining of Bharat is being done deliberately because left parties once upon a time had a history where they denied blood to even our soldier in the 1962 war against China. The problem is, this is a mindset of the left party. Their orientation is essentially against the unity and integrity of India. Perhaps that is the reason why KT Jaleel is articulating this position. It must be acted upon," added Poonawalla.

Last month, Swapna Suresh, prime accused in the Kerala gold-smuggling case, alleged in the Kerala High Court that KT Jaleel acted against the interests of India by trying to "hoodwink" the ruler of UAE into banning a Malayalam daily there for gaining political leverage in his party.

"The action of KT Jaleel as a minister is in total violation of the oath of office as his action is in effect against the interest of our nation and its citizens, including a news daily of this nation which is considered as the fourth pillar of our Constitution," she had said in her affidavit.

"... therefore the action of K T Jaleel in conspiring against the citizens and organisations of this nation while holding the Constitutional post of a Minister of State (Kerala) is in total violation of his oath of office and MEA protocol and, therefore, is unconstitutional and anti-national and betrayal of people's confidence reposed in him as an elected representative," she had added.