From correspondents in Delhi, India, 12:31 PM IST

Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy who had issued a statement advocating freedom for Kashmir was a 'loose cannon' who had 'abused the liberal traditions of India', the Congress said Wednesday.

'She (Roy) is a loose cannon who has abused liberal traditions of India to its fullest,' said Congress spokesperson Manish Tiwari.

'It is a great tribute to the tolerance of India's ethos that a person who openly calls for Balkanization of country is not being locked up and the keys are not being thrown away,' Tiwari told IANS.

The author and rights activist had said Monday after participating in a rally to the UN office in Srinagar: 'The reaction of the people in Kashmir is actually a referendum. People don't need anyone to represent them; they are representing themselves. India needs freedom from Kashmir as much as Kashmir needs freedom from India.'

(Staff Writer, © IANS)