Former chief minister and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti has sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention in the issue of slapping UAPA on three Kashmiri students of Agra Medical College for their alleged social media posts celebrating Pakistan's 10-wicket win over India in the T20 World Cup on October 25 .
The three students—Inayat Altaf Shaikh, Showkat Ahmad Gani, and Arshad Yusuf—were first suspended by the college authorities and later booked by the UP police under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) “for promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence and language, and for doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony”. Other charges slapped on them include making, publishing or circulating statements, rumours or reports with intent to cause fear or alarm in the public.
The parents of the three students had staged a protest against their arrests and requested Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor LG Manoj Sinha to intervene. The arrests of the students has caused a lot of consternation among people and political parties in Kashmir. Leaders of all Kashmir-based parties have advised caution in the matter while demanding the release of the students and withdrawal of the charges. The PDP staged a protest in Srinagar.
In a letter, Mufti requested Modi to intervene in the matter so that “the future of these young bright minds is not destroyed”.
“I write to you with a deep sense of disappointment and concern about the alarming situation in Jammu and Kashmir. Not too long ago, when you presided over an all party meeting in Delhi, you expressed your intention to remove 'dill ke doori' between Delhi and J&K. In my capacity as the President of PDP, I suggested a few confidence building measures that would have provided a sense of relief and breathing space to the people of J&K,” Mufti wrote.
She said they had been waiting for the roll-out of a policy to address the hearts and minds of people, especially the youth. “While the spree of raids, arrests, killings continue unabated, the level of repression and state intolerance has touched a new low.”
Mufti said there were expectations that Home Minister Amit Shah's recent visit to J&K would lead to a meaningful outreach, especially after his statement about engaging with the youth in the UT. “Instead what followed was shocking and worrying,” she said.
The letter said a friendly cricket match between India and Pakistan that was solely a source of entertainment for Kashmir's people bruised by incessant lockdowns, internet gag and restriction of movement had led to booking youngsters under the draconian UAPA for simply choosing to cheer the winning side. Mufti alleged that the bright young people pursuing professional courses like MBBS are being targeted and slapped with anti-terror laws.
She claimed that the three students were booked for sedition even as their college had admitted that they didn’t engage in any anti-national activity. “Patriotism and sense of loyalty has to be cultivated with compassion and can’t be forced by wielding the baton or by the barrel of a gun.” Mufti said such punitive actions laced with contempt will only further the sense of mistrust and alienation between the younger generation of Kashmir and the rest of the country.
