Mirwaiz asks Omar govt to stop arrest of people in decades old cases | India News

SRINAGAR: Days after J&K Police arrested two persons in cases dating back nearly 30 years, Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Friday asked the Omar Abdullah govt to intervene and stop such action. He accused the authorities of “harassing” individuals over matters long settled”, and said the move had created anxiety and uncertainty among those who had moved on.Mirwaiz said already thousands of “Kashmiri prisoners are languishing in jails in and outside J&K, some for decades, and arresting more people only adds to the woes and pain of Kashmiris”.Addressing the Friday congregation at Jamia Masjid, Mirwaiz said the continued detention of people for decades in jails outside J&K raised serious humanitarian and legal concerns. This often resulted in delays in trial proceedings and severely limited family access, running contrary to basic principles of humane treatment and natural justice, he said.Mirwaiz called for a review of the handling of old cases, and appealed for the transfer of detainees back to J&K.On Dec 10, police took two senior separatists into custody in connection with a 29-year-old rioting and Arms Act case. Former JKLF leader Javed Mir and Islamic Students League chairman Shakeel Bakshi were arrested after surrendering before a Srinagar court.Officials said the arrests are part of a renewed push to pursue long-pending cases from the peak of militancy in the 1990s.