2001 Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru's execution served no purpose: Omar Abdullah
Srinagar: Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and Jammu and Kashmir National Conference leader Omar Abdullah's recent remark that the execution of Afzal Guru, who was convicted in the 2001 Parliament attack, served no meaningful purpose has sparked a strong reaction from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), media reports said.
"What does Omar Abdullah want to solve?’ said BJP leader and former Deputy chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Kavinder Gupta, questioning Omar Abdullah’s stance.
“If anti-national elements who hatched a conspiracy against India are given the death penalty, why do they object to this? They want to create a situation by taking support from terrorists. They are taking support from terrorists. That is why he is speaking such language," Gupta was quoted as saying by NDTV.
Omar Abdullah previously clarified that the Jammu and Kashmir government was not involved in the execution of Afzal Guru.
He added that if state approval had been required for the execution, it would have been withheld.
Abdullah said that it was “unfortunate” that the Jammu and Kashmir government had nothing to do with the Guru’s execution.
“Otherwise, you would have had to do it with the permission of the state government, which I can tell you in no uncertain terms would not have been forthcoming. We wouldn't have done it. I don't believe that any purpose was served by executing him," Abdullah was quoted as saying by NDTV.
Omar Abdullah’s statement draws significance as it comes ahead of the Assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir, scheduled to be held in three phases on September 18, 25 and October 1.
Notably, the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference has entered into a seat-sharing agreement with the Congress.
Jammu and Kashmir has a total of 90 assembly constituencies, and 7 of these seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and 9 for Scheduled Tribes (STs).
According to the Election Commission of India, there are 88.06 lakh eligible voters in the region.
These upcoming assembly elections will be the first in Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370.
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