A prominent Kashmiri Pandit body on Thursday batted for the release of incarcerated human rights defender Khurram Parvez.Khurram has been detained under notorious Public Safety Act (PSA) and is lodged in Kotbalwal jail Jammu.
“The law like Public Safety Act should be used against the people who damage the social fabric within the society and not against those who raise concern about the human beings,” Kashmir Pandit Sangarsh Samiti (KPSS) said in a statement.. “Slapping PSA is now becoming more like trend from the last three months.”The statement informed PSA was introduced to stop timber smuggling in the State of Jammu and Kashmir.“But, now, this law is used against anyone and the format is available readymade in every concerned office with a fill in the blank pattern. One has to just type particulars of the person and PSA is issue against him,” the statement said.
“India is a democratic country and so is the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Not every voice is a secessionist voice and the Government system has to differentiate it in a proper way,” Tickoo observed.Tickoo said that PSA slapped against the known Kashmiri human rights activist Khurram Parvez is “one of the examples”.“Khurram Parvez always raised voice for safe guarding human rights of the people living in this part of the world and he has nothing to do with any voice favouring, or vice-versa, any country, whether be it India or Pakistan. He stands for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, without colour, caste, creed or religion,” the prominent Kashmiri Pandit leader asserted.“KPSS is of opinion that PSA should be used against those people who damage the public property of this state whether it is the matter related to timber smuggling or temple land mafia. As the people involved in such acts, damage the property belonging to the state and its people.
Temple land mafia, which is run with an active assistance from non-state subjects directly injure the Section 25 of the constitution of Jammu and Kashmir which states that state is duty bound to foster equality and secularism. Despite number of complaints are pending before the competent authorities who are also empowered to issue PSAs against any person as per the Public Safety Act remain action less for the reasons best known to them as till date not a single person is framed under the charges and slapped with PSA, instead a person who belongs to Kashmir and who represents the voice of Kashmiri people without colour, caste, creed or religion on human rights is slapped with PSA,” the statement said.“State Government or the concerned agencies should immediately revoke PSA against him and he should be set free from all the charges that are allegedly framed against him,” the statement concluded. (CNS)