3 Ex-J&K Chief Ministers Under House Arrest Over Assembly Seats Protest

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Three former Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers have been put under house arrest to prevent their proposed protest against the delimitation commission. The high-security zone, Gupkar Road in Srinagar, where Farooq Abdullah, Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah are staying has been sealed off.The police have deployed security trucks outside the homes of the political leaders and no one is being allowed to enter or exit from there.The Gupkar Alliance headed by Farooq Abdullah had announced a protest against the recently released delimitation commission draft proposal of allotment of assembly seats in Jammu and Kashmir.The commission has proposed six additional seats for Jammu province against one seat in Kashmir, which runs contrary to the population ratio of both provinces of the former state.The opposition has described it a brazen display of gerrymandering. They alleged that the proposed seat allotment goes against adult franchise of one person one vote. The commission has said that besides population, other considerations like administrative units, area and proximity to the border have been factored in while distributing seats.Omar Abdullah tweeted and showed how his home, the home of his father and sisters have been locked and security trucks deployed outside the gates.At some places, the supporters of National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party held protests, demanding restoration of special status. The party supporters including former legislators raised slogans against detention of leaders and the delimitation exercise.They tried to march towards Gupkar Road, but were stopped by police.