Srinagar
In occupied Kashmir, the High Court Bar Association (HCBA) has described the repeal of Article 370 and 35A of the Indian Constitution as illegal and unconstitutional and said that the Bar had challenged the infamous Indian move in the Supreme Court of India.
Narendra Modi-led communal Indian government abolished the special status of occupied Kashmir by repealing Articles 370 and 35A on August 5, last year, and put the territory under military lockdown.
The HCBA spokesman, Advocate GN Shaheen, talking to media persons in Srinagar said that Kashmir was an internationally recognized dispute and it could only be settled through political means rather than use of brute force.
He deplored that freedom-loving Kashmiri leaders and youth were being physically and mentally tortured in jails which was deplorable.
Advocate GN Shaheen demanded immediate release of all illegally detained Kashmiris including HCBA President, Mian Abdul Qayoom, and General Secretary, Muhammad Ashraf Butt.
He also praised the courage and steadfastness of HCBA former President, Nazir Ahmad Ronga and President of Baramulla Bar Association, Abdul Salam Rathar, who were recently released from their illegal detention.—KMS