In a rebuttal to Senior PDP leader and MP Muzaffar Beig, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association Monday took a strong exception to his statement with regard to the recent hunger strike, by the inmates of Baramulla Jail.In a meeting of the Executive Committee Members, held here on Monday, it was stated that on hearing that the Baramulla jail inmates have gone on hunger strike, a five member team of High Court Bar Association, visited the jail, on 04/11/2016, after obtaining orders from Sessions Judge Baramulla and found that on 1st of November, 2016, one inmate Abdul Lateef Kaloo lodged in barrack no. 7 of the jail, had developed severe chest pain. The jail inmates approached the jail staff, so as to facilitate his taking to the hospital. The jail staffers, however, refused to take him to the hospital, which led to a heating exchange of words, between the two. The jail authorities thereafter called SOG police personnel, who, led by SHO Khalid, took control of the jail and entered all the barracks and beat everyone who came in their way. They beat the inmates with iron rods and fired PAVA and Pepper Gas Shells, inside the barracks. They did not even spare Ghulam Mustafa, a 78 year old detenue and beat him ruthlessly causing fracture to his right arm. Another inmate was hit on the head. They destroyed all the belongings of the jail inmates and damaged the books of the jail library and even desecrated Holy Quran and several books on Islam. The list of all those books is with the Bar Association. It was in this context that the inmates had gone on hunger strike, which included even the female detenues.
The treatment meted out to the jail inmates, was worse than what used to be done by Ghulam Qadir Ganderbali and his associates.The letter addressed by some of the detainees lodged in Police Station Rajbagh, should be an eye opener for all those who proclaim that those, who are arrested by police and are lodged in police stations, interrogation centres and jails, are not beaten, tortured or humiliated, while in custody.The claim of Beig that Baramulla jail inmates are ‘enjoying’ many facilities including television and heating arrangements is totally absurd and childish. Firstly, because television sets are provided to all the inmates of all the jails across the State. Baramulla jail is therefore, no exception. Secondly providing of heating arrangements to the prisoners, is regulated by jail manual and even the Hon’ble High Court in one of the cases has directed providing of such heating arrangement to the jail inmates, with the onset of winter. There is therefore, nothing unique, if such facilities are being provided to the inmates of Baramulla jail as well, by the jail authorities.”The Bar Association wants to remind Mr Beig, who is himself a lawyer, that it is a basic tenant of International Human Rights law that nothing can put a human being beyond the reach of Human Rights protection and even some may lose many of their rights, because of having been imprisoned through a proper and legal procedure, yet, the basic rights of life, health, fair procedure and justice, human treatment and dignity and security from ill treatment or torture, remain. A constitutional bench of Supreme Court of India, where Beig, has practiced for a long period of time, in Sunil Batra’s case, has held that there is no iron curtain drawn between the constitution and the prisons and a conviction for a crime does not render one, non-person, whose rights are subject to prison administration.
The Supreme Court has also stated that where the rights of a prisoner, either under the constitution or under other laws are violated, the writ power of the court can and should run to his rescue. It has also said that a prisoner wears the armour of basic freedom, even behind bars and on breach thereof by lawless officials, the law will respond to his distress signals, through writ-aid. The Supreme Court has also held that the prison houses are part of Indian earth and the Indian constitution cannot be held at bay, by jail officials dressed in a little brief authority, when part III is invoked by a convict/under trial. A prisoner is not stripped of his rights when he is in jail and while in jail he has to be provided all amenities of life and providing a television set or a heater, is included therein.The Bar Association also wants to tell Beig that Narendra Modi and Govt of India, during the past four months, have never tried to reach out to the Hurriyat leaders. “It is true, that Rajnath Singh, came to Kashmir three times, during this period, but every time before coming to Kashmir, he declared that Govt of India is not going to talk to Hurriyat leaders and if anyone is ready to talk, he has to do so, within the framework of Indian Constitution. When some of the members of All Party Delegation, desired to meet the Hurriyat leaders, he at once stated that they have no mandate from Govt of India to talk to Hurriyat leaders and if they do so, it shall be in their individual capacity.
The PDP’s invitation to Hurriyat leaders to meet members of All Party Delegation, was not on behalf of the Govt of India or on behalf of the Govt of J&K. It was an invitation from the President of PDP, which like other parties, had also been invited to meet the All Party Delegation. An invitation from one party to another party, can therefore, under no circumstances be equated with the reaching out of “Narendra Modi or Rajnath Singh” to Hurriyat Leaders.A few weeks before when Yashwant Sinha, a prominent BJP leader, met Hurriyat leaders, both the Central Govt. and BJP, distanced themselves from him. Yashwant Sinha, himself stated that he and other members of his delegation, have come of their own, to share the pain and grief of the people of Kashmir. He was however, told by all the Hurriyat leaders who met him, that they are not averse to any dialogue, but they insisted that the dialogue should be sustained, sincere and unconditional and in order to make it result oriented, Pakistan should also be engaged.
There has however been no reply from the Govt of India to their demand.The Bar Association also wants to tell Mr Beig, that shutdown calls are honoured and implemented by one and all and the mandate to issue protest calendar has been given to the leadership by the people, the latest proof of which is the meeting of all the stakeholders held at Hyderpora on 8th of November, 2016. All the lawyers all over Kashmir, whose number is in thousands, excepting those, who are on the pay roll of the Govt, are following the protest calendar scrupulously, though they are no better than daily wagers who earn their livelihood on daily basis. There are of course some, who are unintentionally going against the protest calendar, but their number is negligible. The protest calendar is therefore, not a ‘joke’ as suggested by Mr Beig, but it has given a ‘jolt’ to the Central as well as the State Govt. as for the last five months, it is the writ of the Hurriyat leadership and not of the Govt. which is followed by the people. (CNS)