PDP president appears before ED, questioned for 5 hrs
Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, Mar 25: People’s Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti today appeared before the Enforcement Directorate for questioning in an alleged money laundering case and said that the Government is criminalizing the dissent.
She said that she was forced to sign a statement by the ED despite her reluctance. “Finally despite my reluctance, I was forced to sign a statement which is evident from the CCTV footage of my questioning”, she tweeted. Click here to watch video
In another tweet she says: “To set the record straight, during the course of my questioning at ED, right from the start I insisted on not signing any statement till I consulted my lawyers. But I was shown rule books & told that not signing would have consequences.”
Talking to media persons outside the ED office here where she was questioned for nearly five hours, Mehbooba accused the Government of working through ED, CBI or NIA.
“There were two issues, one was about selling of the property in our name in Bijbehara with question revolving round as to who purchased it, against what amount it was purchased as well as about funds meant for engagement of youths and others,” she said, adding, “it needs no rocket science to understand that dissent has been criminalized in this country.
She said that this country is ruled either by ED, CBI or NIA.
She further said that either there is case of sedition or under money laundering against people who try to speak up. “The country at present is not being run under the Constitution of India but as per the agenda of a particular party wherein one cannot talk or is allowed to open mouth. These things will keep on going,” she said.
Mehbooba said that she has nothing to hide and has clean hands. “This perhaps is the reason that it took them two years to find out anything and now they question about the land for graveyard of my father and secret funds meant for widows and who were the beneficiaries,” she said adding, “I myself and my party, the PDP, will continue work on our agenda and will continue to seek resolution of the Kashmir issue.”
Mehbooba, who was released last year after more than a year in detention following the scrapping of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, was served a notice to appear at the ED headquarters in New Delhi.
On March 19, the Delhi High Court had refused to stay summons issued to her after she moved the court seeking quashing of the summons in the case.
Earlier, she appeared before the ED here in connection with a money laundering case and reached the ED office in Rajbagh at 11 am. She was questioned for five hours.
Mehbooba did not appear before the ED in Delhi on Monday, citing she had prior commitments that could not be cancelled. Later, her request to ED officials that she be questioned in Srinagar instead of Delhi was accepted.
The ED, which had earlier summoned her on March 15, did not insist on her personal appearance at that time.
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