‘Release Kashmiri political prisoners in this horrendous Covid situation’

Srinagar, May 7, Peoples Democratic Party President and former Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir Mehbooba Mufti in a communique to Prime Minister Narendra Modi has appealed him to release the Kashmiri political prisoners who are languishing in jails without facing any prosecution.

“I write to you at a time when the entire country has been engulfed by a deadly second wave of COVID. Unfortunately, the health infrastructure has completely collapsed & the harrowing images of stranded COVID patients gasping for breath have shocked us all. The sense of helplessness is so acute & pervasive that the living is quite literally suffocating to death while the dead suffer indignity even after losing the battle to this virus.”

“Families have watched on helplessly as they struggle to even accord their loved ones the proper dignified last rites of passage. One doesn’t wish or want to politicize the human tragedy that has befallen us all. It’s an unprecedented humanitarian crisis that doesn’t discriminate on the basis of caste, color, religion or social status and has affected everyone. Perhaps the only silver lining in this tragic time and regional lines are coming together to lend each other a helping hand.”

Mehbooba Mufti writes that worrying reports about prisoners dying due to COVID-19 and subsequent lack of medical attention have been trickling in.

“At a time when the system is struggling to cope with this horrendous situation, lives of prisoners may be the least priority. As far as Kashmir is concerned, it is no secret that hundreds, or maybe thousands of detainees & political prisoners arrested since August 2019 continue to languish in jails both in and outside J & K. Most of them are detained under preventive laws and don’t face any prosecution. Many continue to be held even after courts granted them bail. The most recent reminder of the lurking threat to their lives is Mohammad Ashraf Sehrai’s death who lost his life because he contracted COVID in jail & was deprived of medical care. Throughout the world, most countries have released prisoners on parole in view of the alarming COVID crisis.”

“A democratic & civilized country like India shouldn’t drag its feet & must release these detainees immediately so that they can return home at a time when life feels so threatened. I hope you will give due consideration to this matter & order their release,” Mehbooba writes.