A judge in India sentenced Kashmiri leader Yasin Malik to life imprisonment on Wednesday for sponsoring “terrorist” operations and other crimes, provoking mass demonstrations outside the politician’s home.
Malik, the head of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), previously told a special court designated for the National Investigation Agency that since giving up weaponry in the 1990s, he had been following Gandhian values and non-violent politics.
“Life jail sentence for the prisoner, Yasin Malik,” declared Special Judge Parveen Singh in New Delhi.
Mushaal Hussein Mullick, Malik’s wife, said the sentence was illegitimate. “Indian kangaroo court delivers verdict in minutes,” she tweeted. “The legendary commander will never give up.”
Police used tear gas and pellets to disperse stone-throwing demonstrators outside Malik’s house in Srinagar, the capital of occupied Kashmir.
On May 19, Malik was found guilty of ‘terrorist actions,’ unlawfully soliciting funds, membership in a ‘terrorist’ organisation, criminal conspiracy, and sedition.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari also harshly criticised the Kashmiri leader’s conviction in a “fake trial.”
PM Shehbaz called it a “black day” for the Indian legal system and said the life sentence for a heroic freedom warrior will give Kashmiris renewed hope for their right to self-determination.
Major General Babar Iftikhar, Director General (DG) of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), denounced Malik’s life sentence on “manufactured allegations.”
“Such repressive measures will not dampen the enthusiasm of the Kashmiri people in their legitimate battle against Indian domination. We support them in their quest for self-determination in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions “He stated.
The Senate also passed a resolution urging the international community to pressure India to withdraw all bogus allegations against all political leaders in occupied Kashmir, including Malik, and to secure their safety and well-being.
The JKLF was one of the first armed independence fighters to emerge in occupied Kashmir. It was in favour of an independent and unified Kashmir. The gang, led by Malik, ceased armed resistance in 1994.
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