Mufti’s plea for justice denied as IIOJK court rejects undertrial repatriation bid
Srinagar: In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, the High Court has dismissed a public interest litigation filed by Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti seeking the repatriation of undertrial prisoners languishing in jails outside the occupied territory, a move observers say reflects the judiciary’s unwillingness to confront the grave humanitarian crisis faced by Kashmiri detainees.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the petition had sought directions for the Indian government, the IIOJK administration and prison authorities to transfer undertrial prisoners back to jails within the territory and to ensure basic safeguards such as regular family meetings, unhindered access to legal counsel, independent monitoring of prison conditions and reimbursement of travel costs for families forced to visit far-off prisons.
Legal analysts note that instead of engaging with these substantive humanitarian concerns, the Division Bench headed by Chief Justice Arun Palli and Justice Rajnesh Oswal chose to dismiss the plea on technical grounds, questioning the locus of the applicant rather than examining the suffering of undertrials and their families.
Observers said the court’s reasoning appeared evasive and devoid of substance, as it failed to acknowledge the well-documented reality that thousands of Kashmiri undertrials are deliberately lodged in distant jails in India, making family contact and effective legal defense virtually impossible. They maintained that the petition raised issues of fundamental rights and human dignity that warranted judicial scrutiny, irrespective of the political identity of the applicant.
Critics further pointed out that branding such a plea as “politically motivated” amounts to silencing legitimate advocacy and absolves the state of responsibility for policies that inflict collective punishment on detainees and their families.
Rights groups argue that by refusing to address the merits of the case, the court has missed an opportunity to uphold constitutional guarantees and international human rights standards, reinforcing perceptions that the judiciary in occupied Jammu and Kashmir often aligns with the state narrative at the expense of justice for Kashmiris.
