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SRINAGAR: The reported worsening health condition of separatist leader Shabir Ahmed Shah, along with the hardships encountered by other prisoners from the Valley incarcerated in jails across the country and the challenges faced by their families, resonated strongly in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly on Wednesday.CPIM leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami and former minister and People’s Conference (PC) MLA Sajad Gani Lone pressed the Omar Abdullah government to urgently address the matter with the Centre. While voicing his concerns, Lone acknowledged that Shah’s ideology might differ from others, but emphasised that his health and overall well-being ought to be a priority for everyone irrespective of political differences. He pointed out that Shah was not a militant and had never taken up arms; instead, he was a political separatist leader who had spent the most part of his life behind bars and was now in a state where he could no longer care for himself. “He is not a militant, he is a political leader. His ideology is different, but he can’t even get up or take care of himself,” Lone stated. The PC leader went on to question the conspicuous silence of the J&K Assembly regarding this pressing issue, inquiring, “Then what about this Assembly? We talk about Kashmiri nationalism, we talk about Jammu nationalism but when one of our own is suffering, we remain silent.” Lone called upon the government to pursue the matter through proper official channels and to formally convey the Assembly’s concerns to the Union Home Ministry. “We are not asking to interfere, but expressing concern cannot be a crime,” he clarified. He stressed once again that the Assembly must not stay mute on such matters and should actively seek ways to relay humanitarian concerns about prisoners like Shah to the Central government. During the Zero Hour proceedings, CPI(M) leader Tarigami similarly implored the government to contemplate the transfer of Kashmiri prisoners currently detained in jails outside J&K back to facilities within the Valley. He revealed that he had personally received a telephone call from Shah’s family, who voiced deep worry over his rapidly declining health. “The family of Shabir Ahmad Shah contacted me and requested that the issue be raised in this House,” Tarigami disclosed, further asserting that humanitarian issues of this nature warranted immediate governmental attention. He appealed directly to the administration to thoroughly examine the plight of prisoners held outside the region and to initiate suitable measures for their relocation to jails closer to home. In a related development, Kashmir’s chief Muslim cleric and chairman of the Hurriyat Conference, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, released a statement in which he expressed his “deep anguish and concern” regarding the health status of Shah and another prominent separatist leader, Muhammad Yasin Malik, based on information shared by their family members following recent jail visits. “Shah Sahib’s wife, in a letter to me, conveyed that their daughter, who visited Shah Sahib in jail, reported that he seems to be dying a silent death due to his fast deteriorating health and multiple complications with no recourse to urgent care or hospitalization,” the statement detailed. It continued, “The letter urges the authorities to at least shift him home and convert Shah Sahib’s house into a jail so that the family can take care of him and provide him the urgent medical attention, as his health cannot withstand any further delay.” The Mirwaiz explained that this situation had profoundly alarmed him, prompting him to renew his earnest appeal to the Central government to demonstrate compassion and, on purely humanitarian grounds, either release Shah or, at the very minimum, honour the family’s plea by placing him under house arrest where he could receive proper care. Regarding Yasin Malik, the Mirwaiz noted, “Yasin Sahib’s mother and sister, who also met him in jail a few days back, conveyed that prolonged incarceration and confinement have taken a huge toll on his physical and mental health and that he is also in need of urgent medical care. I urge the authorities to provide medical assistance to Yasin Sahib.” He added, “It is deeply distressing to hear of the pain and suffering that these and other leaders are enduring in detention. Reports about the worsening health and harsh conditions of other Kashmiri political detainees and youth lodged in various jails within and outside Jammu and Kashmir are equally worrying.” The Mirwaiz elaborated further, “This is a matter of human concern and compassion that is above political considerations and ideologies. I urge that immediate and adequate medical care be provided to all detainees suffering from health issues, and I appeal to the authorities and judiciary to consider their condition on humanitarian grounds and their rights as prisoners. I also urge the elected representatives of the J&K Assembly to unite on this issue and play...
