Srinagar, Mar 04 : Tehreek-e-Hurriyat Chairman Mohammad Ashraf Sehrai Monday said ‘vicious atmosphere’ has been created in the Valley by the authorities part of which was the ‘undemocratic and illegal’ ongoing arrest spree of socio-religious leaders and its workers, including resistance leaders and activists during past few days across the valley.
Sehrai in a statement issued to KPS said the government should understand that banning Jamaat-e-Islami arresting its leadership, workers and resistance leaders and activists will not solve anything instead complicated it.
“Ours is peaceful political movement but there is a deliberate design to link it with violence and through that route, banning socio-political organisations, arresting its leadership and workers which is highly condemnable and unfortunate,” he said.
Sehrai said it is ironical that the space for the political dissent is being choked to an extend of enormous suffocation. “We are not allowed to express our legitimate political demand,” he said.
He said the height is that whosoever raises the voice against repression and calls for early Kashmir resolution is being booked under charges of Draconian laws.
Expressing strong resentment over the raids and arresting Tehreek-e-Hurriyat leaders activists, Sehrai said these “repressive” measures are being used as tools to punish and to force Kashmiris into a submission.
He said that such “dictatorial measures” are taken by the government as a policy based on political vendetta. “The government is shoring up all its efforts to spread sense of insecurity among the people of Kashmir, besides muzzling the voices demanding their rights by means of force, banning and jailing,” he said.
He said such ‘illegal and undemocratic’ measures against Kashmiri’s will not change realities on ground. “Force and intimidation will only worsen the already deteriorated Kashmir situation,” he said.
Furthermore, he added that these acts deserve all forms of condemnation.
Sehrai has appealed to the international agencies and organizations for human rights to take cognizance of ‘unabated’ arrests and use their influence to check ‘lawlessness and violations in the state’.
