Delhi Court, yesterday, announced Kashmiri separatist leader Muhammad Yasin Malik guilty of all charges against him, including those under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). Malik had been booked for case related to alleged terrorism and secessionist activities in the Kashmir valley in 2017. The court has scheduled a hearing for Malik’s quantum of punishment for May 25.
Yasin Malik, the chairman of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), has been lodged in Tihar Jail since 2019, under several charges related to terrorism including for being a member of the terrorist organization. It was only on May 10, that Malik finally plead guilty to all the charges in front of the Delhi court.
This news comes just a few hours after Pakistan called for Malik’s acquittal. Earlier this week, Pakistan’s government said that the charges against Yasin Malik. were made-up and that it had issued summons to the Indian envoy over the matter. Pakistan called the charges against the Hurriyat leader ‘fabricated’ and said that their country strongly condemned such false accusation. As such the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has handed over a demarche to Indian charge d’affaires, explaining their stand against Malik’s framed charges.
The Pakistan foreign ministry issued a statement calling for Malik’s acquittal. The statement said, “Pakistan calls upon the Government of India for acquittal of Mr. Yasin Malik from all baseless charges and immediate release from prison so that he can be reunited with his family, recuperate his health and return to normal life.”
Pakistan government has also protested against Malik’s imprisonment, saying that he had been kept in inhumane conditions and has been mistreated continuously. It has alleged that, despite having known of Malik’s chronic aliments, he has been treated brutally.
