Srinagar, July 14 -- As several political leaders in Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday alleged that they have been placed under house arrest to prevent them from paying homage to the 21 people killed by the Dogra army on July 13, 1931, chief minister Omar Abdullah termed the move "blatantly undemocratic". Police and the district magistrate did not comment on the remarks. Reacting on this, chief minister Omar Abdullah said, "To borrow from the late Arun Jaitley Sb - Democracy in J&K is a tyranny of the unelected. To put it in terms you will all understand today the unelected nominees of New Delhi locked up the elected representatives of the people of J&K. The unelected government locked up the elected government." Earlier, Omar had on X said, "In a blatantly undemocratic move homes have been locked from the outside, police & central forces deployed as 'jailers' & major bridges in Srinagar blocked. All to stop people from visiting a historically important grave yard containing the graves of people who laid down their lives to give Kashmiris a voice & to empower them. I will never understand what the law & order government is so afraid of." Paying tributes to the 22 people, the CM likened the July 13, 1931 incident to the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. "July 13 massacre is our Jallianwala Bagh. The people who laid down their lives did so against the British. Kashmir was being ruled under the British Paramountcy. What a shame that true heroes who fought against British rule in all its forms are today projected as villains only because they were Muslims. We may be denied the opportunity to visit their graves today but we will not forget their sacrifices," he said. July 13 was observed as Martyrs' Day - in memory of at-least 21 Kashmris who were killed by the army of Dogra ruler Maharaja Hari Singh during an uprising in 1931 - and used to be a public holiday in Jammu and Kashmir before the reorganisation of the erstwhile state into two Union territories in August 2019. The administration dropped the day from the list of gazetted holidays in 2020. The National Conference, in a statement, said that the party leadership at Gupkar, the advisor to the chief minister, and a majority of sitting MLAs were locked inside their homes since Saturday night. The administration deployed police and CRPF in strength to prevent any movement of people towards the martyrs graveyard in old city's Khwaja Bazar. The forces had sealed roads at entry points into Srinagar and into Old City by road blocks and police jeeps to prevent any movement of vehicles. The Srinagar district administration on Saturday had denied permission to all applicants intending to proceed towards Khawaja Bazar on July 13. Office of deputy CM Surinder Choudhary in a post, said: "Sad state of democracy in J&K. Police have locked the main gate of my official residence at Gupkar Road, Kashmir. Elected representatives are under house arrest in a bid to muzzle public sentiment." Despite the restrictions many leaders and activists of various political parties, including the ruling National Conference, attempted to reach the graveyard but were stopped by police and turned away. "They denied us permission. We attempted a peaceful gathering. But even before we began, our leaders were detained. We came to honour the memory of those martyred in 1931-this is our history, our identity. We condemn the LG administration which is controlling the law and order and is nor allowing us to gather," said NC provincial president Mir Showkat. PDP president Mehbooba Mufti uploaded a picture of a locked gate to her residence and said that mistrust between Delhi and Kashmiris will truly end only when the rest of the country accepted Kashmiri "martyrs" as their own. "The day you accept our heroes as your own just as Kashmiris have embraced yours, from Mahatma Gandhi to Bhagat Singh that day, as Prime Minister Modi once said, the 'dil ki doori' (distance of hearts) will truly end," Mufti said. "When you lay siege to the Martyrs' Graveyard, lock people in their homes to prevent them from visiting Mazar-e-Shuhada, it speaks volumes. July 13 commemorates our martyrs who rose against tyranny, much like countless others across the country. They will always be our heroes," she said. People's Conference president Sajad Lone said, "I don't know why the Union government is so keen to redefine what is sacred for the people of Kashmir. The sacrifices rendered on July 13 are sacred for all of us. Denigrating these sacrifices and stopping everyone from going to the martyrs graveyard, if anything elevates these sacrifices to a new high. Histories that are etched in blood don't vanish," Lone said....