Kashmiri rights defender Khurram Parvez, journalist Irfan Mehraj released on bail
FIDH, OMCT demand India drop all charges, end judicial harassment
Srinagar: Prominent Kashmiri human rights defender Khurram Parvez and journalist Irfan Mehraj were released from Rohini Jail in New Delhi after fulfilling the stringent bail conditions imposed by the court.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the two were released late on Wednesday in a case registered by India’s notorious National Investigation Agency (NIA) after complying with the court’s bail conditions.
Khurram Parvez, coordinator of the Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS), and Irfan Mehraj, a Kashmiri journalist associated with the organization, were arrested by the NIA in March 2023 in a fabricated case under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). The NIA accused them of involvement in anti-India activities and promoting the Kashmir freedom movement.
Khurram Parvez remained in detention for 1,703 days, while Irfan Mehraj spent 1,219 days in custody.
The release follows the Delhi High Court’s June 10 order granting Khurram Parvez bail in a separate case, subject to 13 conditions, including furnishing a bond of 600,000 INR, mandatory residence in Delhi—around 900 km from his home in Kashmir—surrendering his passport, and refraining from making public statements.
In 2023, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention described Khurram Parvez’s detention as arbitrary and called for his immediate and unconditional release.
Meanwhile, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), through the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, welcomed the release of Khurram Parvez and Irfan Mehraj on bail but urged the Indian authorities immediately drop all charges against them and end ongoing legal proceedings.
In a statement posted on FIDH website, the Observatory said both defenders had been prosecuted on trumped-up charges in retaliation for their recognized human rights documentation and accountability work through JKCCS.
It noted that Khurram Parvez, who also serves as Deputy Secretary-General of FIDH, has for years documented enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings and other human rights violations in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). A long-time collaborator with UN human rights mechanisms, he was awarded the 2023 Martin Ennals Award for his tireless work pursuing justice and accountability.
The Observatory stressed that although the conditional release of the two defenders was a welcome development after a prolonged period of arbitrary pre-trial detention, the judicial harassment against them continues. It called on the Indian authorities to withdraw all politically motivated charges against Khurram Parvez and Irfan Mehraj, cease the criminalization of human rights work in Kashmir, and uphold their international human rights obligations by protecting defenders from all acts of reprisals.
