Kashmiris slam framing of 'fake' charges against Hurriyet leader

The Jammu and Kashmir Salvation Movement (JKSM) on Thursday condemned the Indian government's act of framing charges against Hurriyet leader Zaffar Akbar Bhat and seven other Kashmiris.

According to the spokesperson of the organisation, the charges were filed against Bhat and others for supporting the right to self-determination in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

He also said that a special court of India’s notorious National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Srinagar had framed the charges in connection with a false case registered against the accused two years ago.

"A special judge of the NIA court Manjeet Singh Manhas, who was especially brought from New Delhi, framed the baseless charges under various sections of the black Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) law on the directions of the government of India."

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He further said that the case was registered by the so-called State Investigation Agency (SIA) on July 27, 2020 on the charges of arranging admissions of IIOJK residents in MBBS and other professional courses in various colleges, institutions and universities in Pakistan.

The spokesperson termed the basis of the case a complete lie and an attempt to hoodwink the international community on the rising human rights violations in the held territory.

The NIA also accused Bhat of collecting money from MBBS students for organising anti-India and pro-freedom protests in Kashmir. They also accused his family of providing money to stone-pelters to stoke unrest in the disputed region.

He clarified that the people of Kashmir were supporting the scared political movement on their own without the financial support from any country.

"It is basically a show of frustration by the Indian agencies who have lost their control in IIOJK and want to suppress freedom activists and leadership by putting them behind bars."

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He added that the government's decision to restrain Indian students from studying in Pakistan will destroy their careers and affect them adversely.

"Ban on Kashmiri students to travel to Pakistan for pursuing higher education is a conspiracy to keep the people of the occupied territory backward and uneducated."

He further said that Indian occupational forces were killing innocent people in fake encounters on a daily basis and arresting political activists without any court orders to divert the world's attention from the situation in Kashmir.

"The people of IIOJK appeal to the world, particularly to Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, European Union, US, UK and the United Nations, to take notice of the politically motivated court decisions to silent the political leaders fighting for their basic rights granted by the UN resolutions," the spokesperson concluded.