Kashmir youth leader says India election notice over ‘referendum’ remark is effort to ‘throttle’ vote News
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Kashmir youth leader says India election notice over ‘referendum’ remark is effort to ‘throttle’ vote

Waheed Rehman Para, a youth leader of the People’s Democratic Party, said Friday that a notice from the district election officer in Jammu and Kashmir is an “attempt to throttle the vote.” The election official had previously served a notice to Para over remarks he made during a poll rally, according to reports from local media.

The notice was issued following Para’s statement encouraging Kashmiris to treat the election “no less than a referendum,” adding that “Kashmir’s silence should not be understood as its contentment.” Para addressed issues such as drug addiction, jailing, and a general overarching apprehension about the safety of people’s land and identity, specifically apprehensions following the abrogation of Article 370 from the Constitution of India, which took away the special status and protection afforded to Kashmir. The goal, Para said, was to send a definite message to New Delhi so that these concerns are addressed.

The District Election Officer (DEO) of Srinagar issued the notice on May 8, whereas the comment was made on April 20. The Model Code of Conduct for the Guidance of Political Parties and Candidates states that “no party or candidate shall include in any activity which may aggravate existing differences or create mutual hatred or cause tension between different castes and communities, religious or linguistic.” The notice itself said that the speech “has the potential of aggravating the differences among communities and cause discontentment in the society.” It has restrained Para from making any such remarks in the future and given him a period of two days to justify the statement to the DEO. In the instance of non-compliance, legal proceedings will be undertaken.

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