Srinagar, Dec 26: Former chief minister and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Friday expressed serious concern over the continued detention of a large number of Kashmiri undertrials in jails outside the Valley, saying the issue has devastated families both emotionally and financially.
Addressing a press conference, Mehbooba said families of detainees are suffering immensely as they cannot afford frequent travel to distant prisons to meet their loved ones. She said many households are barely able to meet daily expenses, making such visits impossible.
Mehbooba said she had written in February to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police seeking details about the number of detainees and undertrials lodged outside Kashmir, but no response was received. She said letters were subsequently sent to the Union Home Minister and the Home Secretary requesting the transfer of undertrials to jails within Kashmir, but the appeals yielded no outcome.
She as per the news agency Kashmir News Trust said the matter was then taken to court through a public interest litigation, but termed it shocking that the plea was rejected after being given a political colour. Mehbooba said a politician remains closely connected to ground realities and questioned why the court did not take suo motu cognisance of the issue even after rejecting the PIL.
“Why does the court not want to know why undertrials are languishing in jails for years without conviction,” she asked, adding that it was unrealistic to expect poor families to approach courts when they struggle to make ends meet.
Referring to statements made by the Prime Minister, the President and a former Chief Justice of India, Mehbooba said even at the national level it has been acknowledged that nearly 76 percent of prisoners are undertrials. She questioned what options remain for ordinary people if such issues are not addressed.
Mehbooba said there were expectations that the formation of a government would lead to resolution of this sensitive humanitarian issue, but expressed disappointment over the lack of progress. She said the absence of elected MPs from Kashmir has further compounded the problem, adding that parliamentarians like Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi and Mian Altaf Ahmad could have sought official data on undertrials, but that did not happen.
She said she had also requested Omar Abdullah to constitute a team to visit various jails outside the Valley to ascertain the number and condition of Kashmiri undertrials lodged there.
Reiterating her stand, Mehbooba said the demand was limited to transferring those detainees who have not been convicted back to jails in Kashmir. She described the court’s decision as unfortunate but asserted that her party would continue to pursue the matter.
“We have seen the suffering of these families. We have the right to raise this issue and we will not budge,” she said, adding that the struggle would continue until the matter reaches its logical conclusion.
