Adjournment of Shabbir Shah’s bail plea aimed at prolonging detention: DFP
Srinagar: The Jammu Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party (DFP) has expressed serious concern over the Indian court’s decision to adjourn the bail plea of its incarcerated chairman, Shabbir Ahmed Shah, pending before the Delhi High Court, terming it a deliberate attempt to prolong his detention.
According to Kashmir Media Service, DFP spokesman Advocate Arshad Iqbal, in a statement issued in Srinagar, said that repeated adjournments of Shah’s bail plea reflect an age-old tactic employed by Indian courts to linger cases involving Kashmiri political prisoners for an indefinite period. He maintained that such delays expose the discriminatory approach of the Indian judiciary, where due process is routinely compromised in politically sensitive cases.
The spokesman said prolonged incarceration without timely adjudication has become a systematic tool to punish Kashmiri leaders for their political beliefs, denying them basic legal rights guaranteed under law. He alleged that instead of dispensing justice impartially, Indian courts often facilitate state narratives, turning legal proceedings into instruments of political repression against the Kashmiri leadership.
Advocate Arshad Iqbal further said that the overall situation in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir continues to deteriorate, with thousands of political activists and youth languishing in far-off jails under draconian laws. He deplored that Kashmiri detainees are subjected to inhuman conditions, denial of adequate medical care, and prolonged solitary confinement, while being deliberately incarcerated away from their homes to break their morale.
He added that the suffering extends beyond the prisoners themselves, as their families—particularly elderly parents, women and children—are forced to endure immense emotional, financial and psychological trauma due to restricted access, long and costly travel, and constant uncertainty about the wellbeing of their loved ones.
The DFP spokesman appealed to international human rights organizations, including the United Nations and global civil society groups to use their moral and diplomatic influence to press India to end arbitrary detentions, ensure fair and timely trials for Kashmiri political prisoners, and uphold international human rights and humanitarian law in the disputed territory.
