'Release detainees': Top social activist condemns long prison sentences for Kashmiri women

By A Representative

Noted social activist and Magsaysay awardee Sandeep Pandey has strongly condemned the life imprisonment and lengthy prison sentences handed down by a special NIA court to senior Kashmiri leader Aasiya Andrabi and her two associates, describing the verdict as a politically motivated act that violates principles of justice and human rights.

Mr. Pandey, a well-known social scientist who was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership in 2002 for his grassroots work with Asha for Education, asserted that the sentences reflect an attempt to suppress dissent in Jammu and Kashmir. Speaking in his capacity as secretary general of the Socialist Party (India), he termed the verdict a continuation of what he called "organized state oppression" and argued that the judiciary has failed to maintain an impartial role in the region, often acting as "an instrument of the state narrative."

The court sentenced Andrabi, the founder of the now-banned women's organization Dukhtaran-e-Millat, to life imprisonment, while her aides, Fehmeeda Sofi and Nahida Nasreen, were each sentenced to 30 years in prison. The three women were convicted in January under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) for conspiracy and waging war against the state. The NIA court, while sentencing them, observed that the convicts had promoted the idea that "Kashmir is not a part of India" and had eulogized slain terrorists. Andrabi has been in custody since 2018 and has over 30 cases registered against her.

Mr. Pandey, who has a longstanding record of taking principled stances on issues of civil liberties and institutional accountability, questioned the detention of approximately 2,500 residents of Jammu and Kashmir in connection with the Pahalgam terrorist attack. He noted that Union Home Minister Amit Shah had earlier confirmed to Parliament that the terrorists responsible for the April 22, 2025 attack were killed in Operation Mahadev in July 2025. He also called for the immediate release of over a hundred people detained for participating in mourning gatherings following the death of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in late February.

The issue of detentions has also been raised by political groups within Jammu and Kashmir; earlier this month, a delegation of National Conference legislators submitted a memorandum to the Lieutenant Governor seeking the release of detainees, particularly as the holy month of Ramzan draws to a close. Mr. Pandey emphasized that tactics of force, arrests, and imprisonment have neither dampened the morale of the Kashmiri people nor stopped their struggle, and urged that all those detained be released immediately.

The farmer's burden: How oil, war, and climate are rewriting the price of food

By Vikas Meshram The scorching flames of the Middle East conflict are now slowly reaching the kitchens of ordinary people. The true price of this war is paid in daily markets, vegetable shops, and in the shattered minds of farmers. Expensive crude oil, skyrocketing fertilizer prices, and rising agricultural costs are together creating the conditions for global food inflation — and this crisis is directly tied to what people eat and drink every day.

Economic nationalism under strain as Indian corporates turn to America

By Sandeep Pandey* U.S. federal prosecutors withdrew a criminal case involving allegations that Gautam Adani had bribed officials in India to secure solar energy projects, stating that they lacked sufficient evidence. Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani also settled a civil fraud case with the Securities and Exchange Commission by paying a fine of around ₹180 crore without admitting wrongdoing. In addition, Adani Enterprises reportedly deposited around ₹2,750 crore into the U.S. Treasury to resolve allegations that it had violated U.S. sanctions on Iran through purchases of Iranian liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

India’s heatwave crisis: How concrete cities are fueling climate emergency

By Rajkumar Sinha* According to recent studies, urban areas are witnessing a much sharper rise in temperatures than rural regions. The planet is currently heading toward an additional 1.9°C of warming — far beyond the target envisioned under the Paris Agreement . A team of climate scientists associated with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has noted that India’s average temperature increased by nearly 0.9°C during the decade between 2015 and 2024 compared to the early twentieth century (1901–1930). In western and northeastern India, the hottest day of the year has already become 1.5°C to 2°C warmer since the 1950s.

Counterview

Search This Blog