New Delhi: Since August 5, 2019, when the Centre read down Article 370 of the Indian constitution and carved two union territories out of Jammu and Kashmir, several mainstream political leaders, separatist leaders and Islamic clerics have been kept in preventive custody.
One of the leaders currently detained at the MLA Hostel, Srinagar is People Democratic Party’s youth leader, Waheed-Ur-Rehman Para. Para, who has been under detention since August 5, 2019 has been invited for this year’s Australia-India Youth Dialogue (AIYD), which is a track-two young leaders’ dialogue held every alternate year. Fifteen rising and upcoming leaders from both countries meet at the annual conference. AIYD aims to strengthen the bilateral relationship between the two countries.
When a dialogue as prestigious as the AIYD invites a young leader from a region such as Kashmir, it is symbolic of the recognition of the efforts of the individual. Formerly held at Centaur and now shifted to the MLA Hostel, Para’s contributions to youth politics and mobilisation have also been acknowledged by Union defence minister Rajnath Singh during his tenure as secretary, Jammu & Kashmir Sports Council.
Author Nazia Erum, who is also a part of the AIYD 2020, tweeted that Para was not able to join the talks because of his detention.
A fellow delegate hasn’t been able to join us at the #AIYD2020 as he is currently under detention in Kashmir. India needs to urgently recognize the way the clampdown on its own people and leaders is hindering it’s own global brand. Democracy is our biggest asset. https://t.co/3Y7OnCpv8a
— Nazia Erum (@nazia_e) January 16, 2020
The official handle of People’s Democratic Party also raised concerns over Para’s detention.
In #NayaKashmir, GOI jails young leaders to show them the worth of their belief in Indian Democracy @parawahid still under detention at MLA hostel, Srinagar. https://t.co/KImL6nxWwh
— J&K PDP (@jkpdp) January 16, 2020