New Delhi, June 29: A foul cry, reaction and remark of senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and Saifuddin Soz over Indian Army’s counter-terrorism operation today led them into the deep trouble, however, they deserve it. Notably, on Friday, a sedition case has been filed against Ghulam Nabi Azad and Saifuddin Soz for their remarks that more civilians were being killed in army operations in Jammu and Kashmir than terrorists.
The case was filed against Azad under sections 124 (sedition), 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 505 (1) (spreading rumour about army/navy/air force official which is likely to cause mutiny) of the IPC by an advocate Shashi Bhushan on the grounds that the remarks were ‘portraying the Army as killers of innocents which was nothing less than waging war against the country’.
The case has been listed for hearing on Saturday before a magisterial court in New Delhi. According to the complaint lodged by advocate Shashi Bhushan, in a TV interview on June 22, Azad had allegedly said the "Indian Army in Jammu and Kashmir was killing more civilians than terrorists during military operations in the state." The complaint also accused the former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister of spreading hatred and trying to malign the country's image.
On the other side, Saifuddin Soz raked up the controversy by claiming that people of Kashmir prefer independence and pitched for dialogue between the central government and the Hurriyat Conference.
BACKGROUND:
On 22 June, Ghulam Nabi Azad said that the Army has killed more civilians than terrorists. “They take action against four terrorists and kill 20 civilians along. Their action is more against civilians than terrorists. For instance, they killed 13 civilians in Pulwama and just one terrorist. Saying that it will be an all-out operation, clearly shows that they plan to do a massacre. They did not say that they want to resolve the issue through talks. Even America and North Korea solved their difference through dialogue,” he said.
Pakistan based terror organization Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) claimed that Ghulam Nabi Azad is right. In an e-mailed statement, LeT spokesperson Abdullah Ghaznavi quoted his chief, Mahmood Shah, as saying that Azad was right in his view. “We have been of the same opinion as of the expressions of Ghulam Nabi Azad and others since the beginning. India is up to bringing back the era of Jagmohan by imposing the Governor law so as to sabotage the infrastructure and commit massacre of innocents. It is a move to further intensify the mass killings.”