What did Arundhati Roy say on Kashmir that irked Twitterati?

New Delhi, Aug 26: As the public debate in India remains divided over the Central government's decision to strip Kashmir of its special status as well as bifurcate the state into two Union territories, widely acclaimed Indian author Arundhati Roy's comment on the same issue has created quite a buzz on social media.

The Booker prize-winning novelist and human rights campaigner Roy has once again stirred up the hornet's nest with her comments on Jammu and Kashmir. Roy has always maintained a strong, anti-establishment view on Kashmir, which is a far cry from the mainstream view of Kashmir being an integral part of India. Recently in a video that is doing rounds on social media shows, Roy claiming that Pakistan has never deployed its military against its own people.

Taking to Twitter, Tarek Fatah, a former leftist student leader and a journalist from Canada, who is one of the most vociferous critics of Pakistan- the country where he was born wrote,''Pakistan has never deployed its military against its own people. Was she blind and deaf when 3M died in the Bangladesh genocide by Pak Army in 1971? Is she unaware of Balochistan? She's literally reading off a Pakistan ISI briefing note.''

Undoubtedly, Twitterati was enraged seeing the video.

Tarek views on radicalism and fundamentalism have resulted in a section of the Indian media dubbing him an "advocate of a progressive and liberal Muslim identity." Born in Pakistan in 1949, Fatah was a leftist student leader in the 1960s and 1970s. It was in these decades that he was twice imprisoned by successive military rulers of Pakistan. In 1977, he was charged with sedition by General Zia-ul Haq and barred from being a journalist in the country. In 1987, he moved to Canada where he has been active in journalism.

It should be noted that Roy, who won the Booker in 1997 for The God of Small Things, has always seen as controversial figure in India for her championing of politically sensitive causes. She has divided opinion by speaking out in support of the Naxalite insurgency, for casting doubt on Pakistan's involvement in 2008 Mumabi attacks and on Jammu and Kashmir issue.

Check out some of the tweets: