Jammu and Kashmir police on Saturday foiled the Congress’s plan to stage a protest demanding the restoration of statehood, prompting the party leaders to condemn the “heavy-handed” and “undemocratic” use of power to suppress their voices.

The development came on a day the Congress said Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge’s joint letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking the restoration of statehood, had been endorsed by all 233 MPs of the INDIA bloc.

The Congress accused lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha’s administration of using force to detain its leaders and restraining them inside the party’s main office here to quell the protest.

The party leadership, including MLAs, tried to take out a march from its main office in Srinagar but a heavy contingent of police prevented them from leaving the premises. The LG administration routinely shows zero tolerance for all forms of political protests.

Pradesh Congress chief Tariq Hameed Karra said the police detained party leaders at various entry points into the city to stop them from joining the protesters.

Karra said the police halted their “peaceful march” and closed the main gate of the party office from outside while they were demanding the restoration of statehood, “a right unjustly taken from us”.

“This heavy-handed, undemocratic use of police power to suppress our voices will not deter us! Statehood was promised on the floor of Parliament, and the Honourable Supreme Court directed its restoration. Yet, the LG administration continues to obstruct our legitimate demand. We will not be silenced. Our resolve is stronger than ever, and no force can stop the people of Jammu and Kashmir from reclaiming what is rightfully ours,” Karra posted on X.

The Congress leader said the police’s “authoritarian mishandling” of party MLAs was a “shameful attack” on democracy.

“Elected voices are being brutally curbed. We demand justice & restoration of our rights, as promised by Parliament & Directed by Honbl Supreme Court. This oppression won’t silence us,” he wrote.

On July 13, the police had placed chief minister Omar Abdullah and his ministers and MLAs under house arrest to prevent them from reviving the commemoration of Martyrs’ Day to mark the killing of 22 Kashmiri protesters by
the Dogra troops in 1931. The next day, Omar was manhandled to prevent him from entering the graveyard.

Karra said they had decided to intensify their protest as a follow-up to the letter to Modi by Rahul and Kharge seeking the restoration of statehood. As part of the campaign, a Chalo Srinagar march was planned on July 19, Chalo Jammu on July 20, and Chalo Delhi on July 21, where they plan to gherao Parliament.

“The purpose is to present aspirations of people before a deaf and dumb government. For your information, the letter by Rahul ji and Kharge ji is not just backed by our 150 members, but 233 members of the INDIA bloc in the Lok Sabha. Without Congress’s intervention or intervention of Rahul and Kharge ji, it is impossible to get statehood,” he said.