ISLAMABAD: The Hurriyat forum led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has lauded the courage and resilience of illegally detained Hurriyat leaders and activists including Shahidul Islam languishing in New Delhi’s infamous Tihar Jail and said that India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA), which booked these leaders under false charges, has failed to prove anything against them.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the forum spokesman in a statement issued in Srinagar said, “Advocate Shahidul Islam and others that include Shabbir Ahmed Shah, Altaf Ahmed Shah, Ayaz Akbar, Merajuddin Kalwal, Naeem Ahmed Khan, Farooq Ahmed Dar, Shahid Yousuf and Zahoor Ahmed Watali completed one year of imprisonment in Tihar Jail.”
He said that even after the passage of one year, the investigating agency had failed to prove anything against them and yet they continued to face illegal confinement, which was nothing but political vendetta.
The spokesman further said that Shahidul Islam is a diabetic patient and facing multiple health problems as he continues to lose body weight, which is a matter of grave concern. “The condition of other leaders is also quite bad and their health has also deteriorated as basic medical supplies are denied to them,” he added.
The spokesman maintained that all the Kashmiri detainees have been kept with criminals in notorious jail and as such, there is always a risk to their lives. The jail authorities are deliberately denying basic facilities to the Kashmiri prisoners to make them suffer amid scorching heat, he added.
The spokesman expressed serious concern over the plight of Dukhtaran-e-Millat Chairperson Aasiya Andrabi, and her associates Fehmida Sofi and Nahida Nasreen, who have also been lodged in Tihar jail.
He demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all Kashmiri prisoners.
