Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said on Monday that the atmosphere in Jammu and Kashmir is one of fear, and the economy of the state has suffered after the Centre revoked its special status under Article 370 of the Constitution of India on August 5, The Indian Express reported.

The Centre had also imposed a curfew in Jammu and Kashmir following the revocation of the special status, and banned internet and communication services. While normalcy is slowly being restored, the Valley remains under a partial lockdown.

“People who had come to meet me to discuss the problems they were facing were being watched by the security forces,” Azad said in a press conference at the All India Congress Committee headquarters in New Delhi on Monday, according to News18. Azad had visited Jammu and Kashmir earlier this month. He spent four days in Kashmir and two in Jammu.

Azad said 80% of the people who came to visit him at his guesthouse in Srinagar were turned out at the gate itself, ANI reported. He also claimed that security cameras at the gate kept a close watch on the visitors. “All this is happening after the Supreme Court allowed me to meet people,” Azad said. “The administration has tried its best to prevent me from meeting people.”

On September 16, the Supreme Court had allowed the Congress leader to visit Srinagar, Baramulla, Anantnag and Jammu. Azad had tried to visit the state three times before that, but was stopped and sent back to New Delhi every time.

The Congress leader also said that businesses in Jammu have been badly affected. “Nothing is fine in Jammu. The leaders of the ruling party [Bharatiya Janata Party] there are silent for the fear of national leaders,” Azad said. “Every commodity to Kashmir goes via Jammu. And when the Valley is shut, the business has reduced to zero.”

The Congress leader also mocked the announcement of Block Development Council elections in the state on October 24. He said that political leaders of mainstream parties in the state have either been detained or put under house arrest. Azad alleged that the poll dates were announced after the BJP successfully caused the defections of several leaders at the panchayat level.

On September 25, Azad had described the situation in the Kashmir Valley as “very bad” and said that there was no freedom of speech there. “I was not even allowed by the administration to visit 10% of the places where I had planned to go in the Valley,” he added.

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