MUZAFFARABAD: Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Prime Minister Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore, along with other prominent Kashmiri leaders, on Tuesday strongly condemned the sentencing of Kashmiri women leaders by a court in India, calling the verdict a manifestation of “political coercion” aimed at silencing dissent in Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
Taking to X, the prime minister denounced the double life imprisonment awarded to Asiya Andrabi, along with 30-year sentences handed down to her associates Fehmida Sofi and Nahida Nasreen by a special court of India’s National Investigation Agency in New Delhi.
“These verdicts are not about justice; they are instruments of political coercion designed to criminalise dissent and suppress the legitimate voice of the Kashmiri people,” he said, adding that targeting women for their political beliefs laid bare the “deep bias” of the system.
According to reports, a special NIA court in New Delhi had sentenced Dukhtaran-e-Millat chief Asiya Andrabi to double life imprisonment for allegedly conspiring to wage war against India, while her associates Fehmida Sofi and Nahida Nasreen were awarded 30 years’ imprisonment each in the same case.
The AJK premier said the decision reflected a broader pattern in which peaceful political expression in the occupied territory was being met with punitive measures. “This is not the rule of law; it is the systematic criminalisation of a legitimate political struggle for the internationally recognised right to self-determination,” he said.
He urged the United Nations and international human rights organisations to take immediate notice of the development and play their role in ensuring the release of Kashmiri political prisoners.
“The people of occupied Jammu and Kashmir cannot be subdued through intimidation. Their resolve for freedom, justice and dignity will endure,” he added.
Meanwhile, Uzair Ahmed Ghazali, a leader representing the post-1989 migrants from occupied Jammu and Kashmir, also denounced the verdict, describing it as a stark example of injustice and politically motivated retribution.
Mr Ghazali, who heads Pasban-e-Hurriyat Jammu and Kashmir (PHJK), said the penalties imposed on the three activists violated established human rights norms and reflected a policy of coercion over dialogue.
“The only ‘offence’ of Ms Andrabi and her associates is their steadfast struggle for their fundamental and internationally recognised right to self-determination; they are, in fact, being punished for speaking the truth,” he said.
Drawing attention to Ms Sofi, he noted that her continued detention over the past seven years, coupled with the latest sentence, had effectively derailed her academic and personal life, raising serious humanitarian concerns.
Such decisions against Kashmiri women constituted grave human rights violations and a flagrant breach of international law and basic principles of justice, reflecting India’s policy of suppressing dissent through force, he added.
Adding his voice to the condemnation, Altaf Ahmed Bhat, a senior leader of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) and Chairman of the Jammu Kashmir Salvation Movement (JKSM), described the case as politically motivated and fabricated under the draconian Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).
“These fabricated cases are not about justice. They are designed to imprison, discredit and destroy the leadership of a people striving for their basic rights,” Mr Bhat said. He warned that Indian authorities routinely denied medical treatment, ignored credible health needs, and kept Hurriyat leaders in harsh conditions amounting to a slow form of elimination inside jail walls.
Dozens of jailed leaders, such as Yasin Malik, Shabbir Ahmed Shah, Masarat Alam Bhat, Dr Abdul Hameed Fayyaz, and Zaffar Akbar Bhat, continue to languish without due process, many facing deteriorating health with no access to necessary care, he said.
“This is not justice; this is persecution. When judicial systems are used as instruments of repression, detainees become prisoners of politics, not law. These tactics mirror a larger strategy aimed at crushing Kashmiri political movements through manufactured charges and prolonged incarceration rather than through fair and open political dialogue.”
Calling for international engagement, both Mr Ghazali and Mr Bhat urged the international community, human rights watchdogs, and the United Nations to take urgent action, hold India accountable, and pressure New Delhi to release all Kashmiri political detainees, implement UN resolutions on Kashmir, and facilitate the long-delayed process of plebiscite and the right to self-determination.
They said that such measures could not deter the Kashmiri people from continuing their pursuit of justice and their recognised right to self-determination.
Published in Dawn, March 25th, 2026
