MP Lone’s son Hilal booked

New Delhi/Srinagar, Feb. 10: The PSA was invoked against Hilal Lone, the son of National Conference MP Mohammad Akbar Lone, for belonging to a party whose manifesto is to agitate against abrogation of special status of erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir, officials said in Srinagar.

The 47-year-old Hilal Lone, who was under preventive detention since August 5 last year when the Centre announced the abrogation of erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state’s special status besides its bifurcation into Union territories, has also been accused of being the “brain child” behind the “seditious and anti-national” statements given by his father.

On Monday morning, the Deputy Commissioner of Bandipore served Hilal with a dossier informing him that he had been booked under the PSA as the Union territory administration felt that his release could hamper the law and order situation in north Kashmir, the officials said. “You being a probable MLA candidate of National Conference are a probable threat to the public peace and tranquility as you belong to the party whose manifesto is to agitate against the abrogation of Article 370, 35-A of Constitution of India,” the two-page detention order said.

“Being a poster boy of NC and son of senior party leader Mohd Akbar Lone of Sonawari locality, you will find it easy to exploit the innocent people and will instigate them to agitate against the abrogation” of special status.”

■ LAST MONTH, 15 envoys from United States, South Korea, Vietnam, Bangl-adesh, Fiji, Maldives, Norway, Philippines, Morocco, Argentina, Peru, Niger, Nigeria, Guyana and Togo were part of the delegation that visited the newly-created union territory of J&K.

■ ACCORDING TO other reports, the foreign envoys may also be taken to Budgam in the Kashmir valley this time.

■ ENVOYS who visited J&K earlier interacted with security officials and civil society members