Mehbooba Mufti targets Narendra Modi-led government by tweeting on Aarey case
New Delhi: Hours after the Supreme Court heard the Aarey case and asked the Maharashtra government not to carry on with axing, ex-Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti used the development to highlight the situation in her state.
"Glad that activists were able to stop felling of trees at Aarey. One wonders why Kashmiris have been deprived of the very same right to free speech & expression. GOI claims they are now at par with other Indians but truth is they’ve been stripped of even fundamental rights," she tweeted.
Glad that activists were able to stop felling of trees at Aarey. One wonders why Kashmiris have been deprived of the very same right to free speech & expression. GOI claims they are now at par with other Indians but truth is they’ve been stripped of even fundamental rights.
— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) October 7, 2019
However, her comment earned criticism from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party as party leader, Nalin Kohli was quoted as saying by NDTV: "While she is entitled to have a point of view, she has made a rather unfortunate comparison to say that the Supreme Court is not concerned with issues, and that too with Jammu and Kashmir. The Supreme Court has heard matters, in fact, ironically, her own daughter went to the Supreme Court and was allowed to meet with her family members and to meet with her mother."
Hearing the petitions against the felling down of trees to make way for a metro project in Mumbai Aarey colony, the Supreme Court asked the Maharashtra government not to carry on with axing anymore.
The top court said this after the state government admitted that the required number of trees for the project have already been axed.
The next hearing on the case will take place on Oct 21.
Lawyer of the petitioners, Sanjay Hedge, said, "We thank the Supreme Court for its intervention. Don't think anything more will develop on the matter till 21st of the month."
Last week, activists started gathering at Aarey colony after a video showing a tree being cut went viral, alleging that act illegal.
After the video went viral, Shiv Sena scion Aditya Thackeray, whose party is an ally of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), spoke in favour of the activists and supported their resistance to "illegal" felling of trees by MCGM calling the act shameful.
Environmentalists have been protesting the decision to build metro rail depot at the Aarey Colony which has more than five lakh trees.
The Bombay High Court dismissed the petition against felling of trees saying it cannot intervene in the matter as the case is pending before the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal.
The Aarey protests have attracted massive attention in Mumbai with celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan and Akshay Kumar coming out in favour of the government.
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