APHC expresses concern over continued illegal detention of Hurriyat leaders

In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, the All Parties Hurriyet Conference (APHC) has expressed serious concern over the continued illegal detention of thousands of Kashmiris including Hurriyat leaders languishing in different jails of India and the territory.

APHC spokesman Advocate Abdul Rashid Minhas in a statement issued in Srinagar condemned the prolonged incarceration of prominent Hurriyat leaders including APHC Chairman Masarrat Aalam Butt, Muhammad Yasin Malik, Shabbir Ahmad Shah, Nayeem Ahmad Khan, Aasiya Andrabi, Naheeda Nasreen Fahmeeda Sofi, Ayaz Akbar, Pir Saifullah, Merajuddin Kalwal, Shahid-ul-Islam, Farooq Ahmed Dar, Bilal Siddiqi, Molvi Bashir Irfani, Ameer Hamza, Mushtaqul Islam, among others.

He said that these leaders, along with other Kashmiri detainees, have been imprisoned for years on concocted and politically motivated charges and even deprived of their fundamental right to a fair trial and legal defence. Masarrat Aalam Butt was arrested in 2015, Muhammad Yasin Malik in 2019, Shabbir Ahmad Shah in 2017 and Aasiya Andrabi in 2018.

He added that the BJP-led Indian govt is weaponizing the judiciary and state institutions to suppress pro-freedom voices in the occupied territory.