Hundreds of Kashmiris languishing in jails since 2019, says Mehbooba Mufti

Srinagar, Dec 26 People's Democratic Party (PDP) President Mehbooba Mufti said on Friday that since 2019, hundreds of Kashmiris have been languishing in jails.

Addressing a press conference here, former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti said, "Since 2019, hundreds of our youth have been languishing in jails. Many families have approached me regarding this matter."

She alleged that the entire country is reeling under intolerance, and lynching incidents are happening.

"In 72 hours, three incidents happened. The government headed by Omar Abdullah should send a team of ministers to ensure the safety of Kashmiris outside," she said while referring to a recent incident of a Kashmiri shawl seller reportedly beaten by Bajrang Dal activists in Uttarakhand.

On the job reservation row, Mufti said that even when she was in the government, she spoke a lot about the fact that open merit should have enough opportunity.

On Mirwaiz Umar Farooq's statement alleging that he dropped the title of 'Hurriyat Chairman' from his profile on X under pressure from the authorities, she said this should not have happened when all the leadership of the Hurriyat Conference is already in jail.

Mufti disclosed that she had written a letter to the DGP and chief secretary seeking information about the undertrials lodged in jails outside Jammu and Kashmir, but said she got no response.

"I got no response. Then I went to the High Court, but their response has been negative. They are saying my PIL was politically motivated. The High Court has already held that undertrials cannot be treated as convicts. Article 21 of the Constitution says we can talk about these issues. I don't know why the Court refused my PIL," the PDP chief said.

"I remember when PSA was slapped on me, I was called daddy's daughter," she said.

She said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has mentioned that "we have 3.5 lakh undertrials in different jails".

"76 per cent of prisoners are undertrials. 1206 convicts are from Kashmir who have been arrested under UAPA," she said.

"The National Conference has two MPs in Parliament, but they didn't raise this matter. The Rajya Sabha members are not doing anything. The chief minister is not talking about it. I had requested the chief minister to form a team to do an analysis, but he didn't," she alleged.

She said the PDP is committed to taking this issue to a logical conclusion. "We will not stop our fight for the rights of Kashmiris," he reiterated.

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