One more Kashmiri youth martyred

Jammu, January 15, 2020 (PPI-OT): In occupied Kashmir, Indian troops in their fresh act of state terrorism martyred one more Kashmiri youth in Doda district of Jammu region, today, raising the toll to five in less than one week. The troops martyred the youth, identified as Haroon Hamad, during a cordon and search operation in Gundara area of the district. Indian police claimed that Haroon was a mujahid commander, who was killed during an encounter with the troops.

Meanwhile, the New York-based Human Rights Watch has criticized the Indian government for gross human rights violations including communication blackout imposed after the abrogation of Kashmir’s special status in August, last year. The Human Rights Watch in its World Report 2020 said, the Indian government has tried to shut down Kashmir, hiding the full extent of the harm caused there.

The 652-page report says that on August 5, before revoking the state’s special status, the government imposed a security lockdown and deployed additional troops. Thousands of Kashmiris were detained without charge, including former chief ministers, political leaders, opposition activists, lawyers, and journalists. The internet and phones were shut down. The government said it was to prevent loss of life, but there were credible, serious allegations of beatings and torture by security forces.

People of the occupied territory continue to suffer due to unrelenting military siege and lockdown on the 164th consecutive day, today, particularly in the Kashmir valley and the Muslim majority areas of Jammu region. The locals strongly refuted the Indian claim about partial restoration of internet service, saying that such statements by the Indian rulers were only meant to ward off the rising global pressure.

The APHC-AJK Information Secretary, Sheikh Abdul Mateen in a statement issued in Islamabad said that the Kashmiris were determined to carry on their struggle for freedom of their motherland from tyrannical clutches of India, against all odds. He said that the people of occupied Kashmir were ready to face Indian bullets on their chests but would never surrender their just cause.

On the other hand, in the face of extensive pressure by the BJP-led Modi government, the Mysuru Bar Association has prevented its lawyers from appearing for Nalini Balakumar, who is facing sedition charges for holding a ‘Free Kashmir’ placard during a recent protest at the University of Mysore. The move drew sharp criticism from civil society as well as legal experts. Former Indian Supreme Court judge, Justice V Gopala Gowda said a lawyer is professionally duty bound to render legal assistance to a client.

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