Kashmiri journalist Irfan Mehraj remanded to 10 days NIA custody, RSF demands immediate release

A Delhi Court has remanded the Kashmiri journalist Irfan Mehraj to NIA custody till April 1 He was produced before a special NIA judge of Patiala House Court on Wednesday afternoon The investigation agency had sought twelve days of remand to question MehrajMehraj was arrested by the sleuths of the National Investigation Agency in Srinagar on Monday evening His family said that he was brought to New Delhi on Tuesday evening and was produced before the court on Wednesday afternoonOn Wednesday Reporters Without Borders RSF called for the immediate release of Mehraj saying that he has been arrested on ldquospurious terrorismrdquo charges and is facing the possibility of life imprisonmentDaniel Bastard the Head of the global press freedom organisations AsiaPacific desk said in a statement that Irfan Mehraj is an experienced responsible and careful reporter who has no place being in prison ldquoSpecial laws intended to combat terrorism should not be used to suppress the activities of journalists In view of the clearly spurious nature of the charges brought against him we call on Indian home minister Amit Shah to order his immediate and unconditional releaserdquo he saidMehraj was working as an editor with Twocirclesnet and also a regular contributor to AlJazeera and Deutsche Welle His work has also been published in several other local and international publicationsFormer Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti while censuring the National Investigation Agency for arresting Mehraj said that ldquodraconian lawsrdquo like the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act or UAPA are being ldquoabused constantlyrdquo to ensure that the process itself becomes the punishmentShe tweeted ldquoWhile conmen are given a free run in Kashmir journalists like Irfan Mehraj are arrested for doing their duty by speaking the truth Draconian laws like UAPA are abused constantly to ensure that the process itself becomes the punishment SICrdquoThe National Investigation Agency NIA arrested Mehraj from Srinagar The agency alleged that he was a close associate of a human rights activist Khurram Parvez and was arrested in connection with its ongoing investigation into an ldquoNGO terror funding caserdquoldquoMehraj was a close associate of human rights activist Khurram Parvez and was working with his organisation Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Societies JKCCSrdquo PTI quoted an official as sayingJournalist Federation of Kashmir a journalist network based in Kashmir has condemned Mehrajs arrestThe journalist network said that this is not the first time journalists from Kashmir have been arrestedharassedquestioned Summons for questioning and denial of their fundamental right to travel for professional academic and personal reasons is part of the tacticAlso readSpace for media freedom has progressively eroded in Kashmir Editors Guild on arrest of journalist Irfan MehrajIn a thread of tweets the press body said that three journalists from KashmirmdashAsif Sultan Sajad Gul and Fahad Shahmdashare already in jail JFK strongly condemns the pattern of intimidation and views it as continued attacks on freedom of press in KashmirAmong others UN Special Rapporteur on HRD Mary Lawlor Amnesty Internation Editors Guild of India and the Press Club of India have demanded immediate release of MehrajIn a statement released on Tuesday the Amnesty said that the arrest of Mehraj under terror charges is a travesty ldquoThe arrest is yet another instance of the longdrawn repression of human rights and the crackdown on media freedoms and civil society in the region of Jammu and Kashmir The stifling of the rights to freedom of expression and association continues unabated in KashmirrdquoThe statement further said ldquoHuman rights defenders such as Irfan Mehraj should be encouraged and protected not persecuted He must be immediately released The repression must stop Criminalization of legitimate human rights work is extremely alarming and the authorities must put an end to this immediatelyldquoIndian authorities should prioritize ending impunity for the human rights violations that human rights defenders and journalists have bravely documented and exposed especially in Jammu and Kashmir and ensure that human rights defenders and activists can work in a safe and enabling environment without any fear of reprisalsrdquo