Mehbooba Mufti says she supports Article 370, is ‘mentally Naxal’

PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti hit back at Union minister Kiren Rijiju after he defended Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'mentally Naxal' remark. Sharing a photo of Modi with her father Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on X, Mehbooba wrote: 'I support Article 370. I am a mental Naxal.' Rijiju had earlier listed three criteria for who qualifies as a 'mentally Naxal': those who back Maoists and reject the Constitution, those who support separatists and Article 370, and those who talk of cutting the 'chicken neck' to separate the Northeast from India.

Several opposition leaders criticised Modi's Independence Day speech, where he warned against people deep inside the system who manipulate policies. Congress's P. Chidambaram called 'mentally Naxal' the latest in a series of BJP labels like 'urban Naxal' and 'tukde-tukde gang', all aimed at targeting opponents. MP Manoj Jha joked that if 'urban Naxal' was a postgraduate degree, 'mentally Naxal' was a PhD, and the PM might need to start a university at this rate.