ISLAMABAD: Chairman of All Parties Hurriyet Conference, Syed Ali Gilani has said that denying political space, suppressing genuine voices and unleashing crackdowns on pro-freedom leaders and activists were deliberate acts to create uncertainty in the territory.
Syed Ali Gilani in a statement issued in held Srinagar said that hundreds of innocent youth detained under frivolous cases were languishing in jails and police stations across the occupied territory and most of them had been detained under infamous Public Safety Act (PSA), KMS reported.
"Masarrat Aalam Butt, Ameer Hamza Shah, Sheikh Muhammad Yousuf, Muhammad Yusuf Lone, Abdul Ghani Butt, Muhammad Rustum Butt, Mir Hafeezullah, Muhammad Yousuf Falahi, Muhammad Shaban Dar, Abdul Majeed Rather, Raies Ahmad Mir, Maulana Sarjan Barkati and hundreds other detainees arrested during 2016 mass uprising are lodged in different jails and interrogation centres," he added.
Gilani said that the detainees were kept in miserable conditions.
"They are subjected to vengeance and are harassed on one pretext or the other. We are receiving disturbing reports from different jails. Jail officials in Jammu, Kathua and Udhampur are very harsh towards prisoners. Most of the detainees are kept in lock up in their jail barracks. Criminals lodged in these jails are continuously targeting these detainees," he said.
The octogenarian leader said that the detainees were provided substandard food and no proper medical facility was provided to the ailing prisoners. Jail authorities are creating hurdles during the meeting between prisoners and their families and these meetings are often denied, he said.
He said that since the inception of BJP-PDP regime, political activities were being banned and even restrictions against religious obligations were being imposed. Similarly, political leaders and activists are detained or kept under house arrest, he added.
The APHC Chairman urged the International Committee of Red Cross and Amnesty International to take cognizance of the miserable plight of Kashmiri political detainees and impress upon India to shun its callous attitude towards the detainees and provide them with basic necessities as per jail manual. (APP)