NAJAR condemns the crackdown on advocates in Kashmir!

Calls for immediate release of all advocates and end to repression !

19^th July, 2024:  National Alliance for Justice, Accountability & Rights (NAJAR), a collective of progressive legal professionals for democratic causes, vehemently condemns the recent crackdown on multiple advocates in Kashmir. The arrests of four lawyers, part of Jammu & Kashmir High Court Bar Association, has sparked outrage and concern both within Kashmir and outside. We unanimously call for the release of all advocates, activists and journalists arrested in Jammu & Kashmir, both recently, and since 2019.

As per reports and eye witness accounts, Adv Nazir Ahmed Ronga, the ad hoc Chairman of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association was arrested on 11^th July, in the middle of the night, under the Public Safety Act (PSA), without prior notice. Sr. Adv Mohammad Ashraf Bhat, former general secretary of the Kashmir chapter of the J&K High Court Bar Association (JKHCBA) was arrested on 17^th July from his residence and booked under PSA. He has been lodged in Kathua jail. Adv Mian Abdul Qayoom was apprehended on 25^th June by the Jammu & Kashmir police for questioning related to the tragic assassination of lawyer Babar Qadri in 2020, under circumstances that raise serious questions about due process. Another lawyer, Adv Mian Muzaffar was also arrested recently.  

These arrests follow a troubling pattern of suppression and violation of human rights and rule of law in the region. NAJAR is of the view that the arbitrary use of the Public Safety Act is unconstitutional and disproportionate. The targeted attack on the Bar Association members is worrying and inimical to the legal profession.

This crackdown is part of a broader trend where voices advocating for Kashmiri rights to social, economic and political self-determination have been systematically silenced and persecuted. Since the abrogation of Article 370 in Aug, 2019, activists and dissenting voices, have faced increased scrutiny, arrests and intimidation tactics from state authorities.  Social activitst Khuram parvez, journalists Irfan Mehraj and Sajad Gul have been in jail for the last few years.

There has also been a systematic hindrance of the functioning of the Jammu and Kashmir Bar Association properly since the abrogation of Article 370. In June, restrictions were imposed on the elections to the association citing alleged ‘secessionist ideology’. The District Magistrate stated that the restrictions were imposed since the Bar Association failed to clarify why the constitution for the Association called ‘Kashmir an issue to be settled’. Despite, the association amending its constitution, they have not been allowed to conduct elections. The Bar Association’s elections have been pending for four years.

The targeting of senior advocates like Mian Abdul Qayoom and Nazir Ahmed Ronga sends a chilling message to the entire legal community in Kashmir. By using draconian laws like the Public Safety Act to stifle dissent and legal representation, authorities are undermining the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Indian Constitution. This suppression not only threatens the livelihoods of these advocates but also erodes people’s trust in the judicial processes.

NAJAR calls upon democratic-minded people and organizations everywhere to closely monitor the situation in Kashmir and ensure that Indian Govt upholds the principles of justice, due process, constitutional and human rights for all individuals, regardless of their political beliefs or affiliations.

In light of the above, we demand:

• the immediate and unconditional release of Adv. Nazir Ahmed Ronga, Adv. Mian Abdul Qayoom, Adv. Mohammad Ashraf Bhat and Adv Mian Muzaffar.

• the early conduct of the much-delayed Jammu Kashmir High Court Bar Association elections, which are crucial for maintaining democratic processes within the legal community.

• the immediate release of social activist Khurram Parvez and journalists Irfan Mehraj and Sajad Gul who have been unjustly incarcerated for the last few years, on questionable charges.

• an end to the rampant arbitrary use of draconian laws and strong-arm tactics of the state to stifle dissent and political views.

We also remind the state of its constitutional duty to create enabling conditions for citizens and civic groups to exercise their freedoms of speech and expression and to carry out their professions without any fear and unreasonable restrictions.

Issued by NAJAR: National Alliance for Justice, Accountability & Rights

1. Adv. Gayatri Singh, Senior Advocate, Bombay High Court
2. Adv Indira Unninayar, Supreme Court and Delhi High Court
3. Adv Shalini Gera, High Court of Chhattisgarh
4. Adv. Shashwati Diksha, Pune
5. Adv Bijaya Chanda, Kolkata
6. Adv. Sarthak Tomar, Bhopal District Court
7. Adv. Rishad Murtaza, Lucknow
8. Adv. Archit Krishna, Delhi
9. Adv. Shreela, Chennai
10. Adv. Ninni Susan Thomas, Delhi
11. Adv. Mini Mathew, Mumbai-Goa
12. Adv. Deeptangshu Kar, Kolkata
13. Adv. Lekshmi Sujatha, Trivandrum
14. Adv. Vertika Mani, Human Rights lawyer, Delhi
15. Adv. Kavya K, Chennai
16. Adv. Purnima Upadhyay, Amravati (Maharashtra)
17. Adv. Purbayan Chakraborty, Kolkata
18. Adv. Anupradha Singh, Delhi
19. Adv. Arjun Sheoran, Chandigarh
20. Adv. Sahana Manjesh, Mumbai
21. Adv. Iswarya, Chennai
22. Adv. Afraaz, Cuttack (Odisha)
23. Adv. Kavin Castro, Chennai
24. Adv. Ritesh Dhar Dubey, Delhi
25. Adv. Mandakini, Hyderabad
26. Adv Jaha Aara, Visakhapatnam (AP)
27. Adv Priyanka Singh, Human rights lawyer, Lucknow
28. Adv Mohd Kumail Haider, Lucknow
29. Naveen Gautam, New Delhi
30. Katyayani Chandola, Human Rights Lawyer, New Delhi
31. Muskan Tibrewala, Lawyer, Chennai
32. Bhargav Oza, law student and labour rights researcher, Ahmedabad
33. Meera Sanghamitra (NAJAR-NAPM), Hyderabad, Telangana
34. Dr Nisha Biswas, Kolkata
35. Priyasha Sinha, Law student, Hyderabad
36. Shaikh Faiyaz Alam, Law student and Civil Rights Activist, Mumbai
37. S.Q. Masood, Law Researcher, Activist, Hyderabad
38. Hananya, Law Researcher, Mumbai
39. Harpuneet Kaur, Law student, Panjab University, Chandigarh
40. Samaa, Law student, Chhattisgarh
41. Arundhati Dhuru, Lucknow (NAPM)
42. Yachana Gupta, Law student, Hyderabad
43. Khalil ur Rehaman, Law student, Dharwad, Karnataka,
44. Maharathi Madhu Kiran, Law student, Ballari, Karnataka
45. Diya Elizabeth Prakash, law student, Kollam, Kerala
46. Deependra Sori, Law student, Bhopal
47. Ananya S, Law student, Hospet, Karnataka
48. Shraddha Halapnavar, Law student, Hubballi, Karnataka
49. Chandana M., Law student, Chikkaballapur, Karnataka
50. Maansi Verma, New Delhi
51. Krithika Dinesh, New Delhi
52. Shruti Lokre, Mumbai

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