Rahul Gandhi accepts Satya Pal Malik's invitation to visit Jammu and Kashmir

Replying to Rahul's claim of violence in Jammu and Kashmir, Malik on Monday said he would send an aircraft to the former Congress president to visit the valley and get an idea of the ground reality.

Rahul said on Tuesday, "Dear Governor Malik, A delegation of opposition leaders & I will take you up on your gracious invitation to visit J&K and Ladakh. We won’t need an aircraft but please ensure us the freedom to travel & meet the people, mainstream leaders and our soldiers stationed over there."

The Congress leader on last Saturday said there were reports of violence in Jammu and Kashmir, which has lost its special status after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led central government abrogated Article 370.

Also the BJP government bifurcated Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories.

Earlier Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, Left's Sitaram Yechury and D Raja were detained at the Srinagar airport when they had tried to visit Jammu and Kashmir.

In the wake of the abrogation of Article 370 and a consequent provisional lockdown to prevent violence, the Jammu and Kashmir Police has appealed all to not believe in rumours spread by few media that violence erupted in the state while categorically rubbishing foreign media reports of a police firing. Not a single bullet was fired in the last six days, said the top police officials in Kashmir on Sunday.

"There has been no untoward incident barring minor stone-pelting which was dealt with on the spot and was nipped in the bud," Director General of Police Dilbagh Singh said.

The J&K Police clarified that "people should not believe any mischievous and motivated news regarding firing incidents in the valley."

Festival Eid was also peacefully celebrated in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday.