In occupied Kashmir, at least eleven people were injured, one of them critically, during a cordon-and-search-operation (CASO) in Kulgam district, today.
Media reports said that Indian troops fired teargas and pellets on peaceful protesters. A teenager, Raqib Ahmad Wagay, was hit by a teargas shell in his head and was shifted to District Hospital, Islamabad, where from he was referred to Srinagar for specialized treatment.
Ten persons with pellet injuries were brought to the hospital for treatment.
The Chairman of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat Jammu and Kashmir, Muhammad Ashraf Sehrai has denounced the slapping of draconian law, Public Safety Act, on Hurriyat activists Abdul Hameed Parray, Khursheed Ahmed Parray, Muhammad Shafi Dar and Firdous Ahmed Dar by the Indian authorities and their shifting to Kot Bhalwal Jail in Jammu.
Muhammad Ashraf Sehrai in a statement issued in Srinagar said that Kashmiri youth were made to face the hanging sword of PSA for their pro-freedom sentiments. He said, the youth are arrested in fake cases and then shifted to jails outside of the Kashmir Valley.
Muhammad Ashraf Sehrai also condemned the arrest of Nasir Ahmed Rathar, Aadil Ahmed Rathar, Showkat Ahmed Mir, Seetha Dar, Khursheed Ahmed Hajjam and Danish Ahmed Dar in Hajin area of Bandipora district. He demanded the release of all Kashmiri detainees languishing in different jails.
Meanwhile, the Jammu and Kashmir Muslim League in a statement strongly condemned the slapping of PSA one more time on liberation leader, Mushtaq-ul-Islam. It said that the invoking of PSA on Mushtaq-ul-Islam and shifting him to Kot Bhalwal jail, Jammu, was political vendetta and the worst form of state terrorism.
Authorities admit Srinagar Central Jail is overcrowded
In occupied Kashmir, after the inmates lodged at Srinagar Central Jail went on an indefinite hunger strike, the jail authorities admitted that the prison is overcrowded which has led to every facility coming under strain.
The prisoners in Central Jail Srinagar have gone on an indefinite hunger strike to protest against undue shifting of some inmates to jails in Jammu, poor food quality, denial of medical facilities and delay in trials. Family members of many inmates told media in Srinagar that the prison conditions had significantly worsened since the Governor’s Rule was imposed in the occupied territory.
Saleem Ahmed Beg, public relations officer to director general of prisons, in a statement in Srinagar said, “The Jail is facing overcrowding which have been taken note of by visiting teams and an amicus curiae. In his report, the amicus curie has mentioned that overcrowding is putting lot of pressure on the existing infrastructure and every facility is under strain.”
The families of the inmates had stated that the detainees were refusing to take food as the jail had been turned into a hell for them. “I had heard about Abu Gharib and Guntanamo, but after seeing the condition of prisoners at Srinagar Central Jail, I don’t think there can be any other worst jail in the world,” said Abdur Rasheed, whose son is languishing in the jail.
