Mamata expresses shock as Omar Abdullah's photo surfaces

Kolkata: Hours after an unverified picture of former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah sporting a greyish-white long beard emerged on social media, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday expressed shock and called Abdullah's detention unfortunate. Mamata reshared the photo on Twitter and said: "I could not recognize Omar in this picture. I am feeling sad. Unfortunate that this is happening in our democratic country. When will this end?"

On January 15, the former Chief Minister was shifted to a house near his official residence, 163 days after he was taken into preventive custody following the abrogation of Article 370 provisions.

Along with his father Farooq Abdullah and former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, Omar was among the hundreds of political, social activists, lawyers and businessmen detained after the centre abrogated Article 370 on August 5 and divided Jammu and Kashmir state into two union territories — Ladakh, and Jammu and Kashmir.

Meanwhile, top US envoy Alice Wells, who recently visited New Delhi, said her visit offered an opportunity to hear more on developments the CAA as she urged the Centre for "immediate release of political leaders detained without charge in Kashmir" post the abrogation of Article 370.