North Kashmir MP Engineer Rashid To Observe Day-Long Hunger Strike In Tihar Jail

Srinagar: Amid the ongoing political slugfest between BJP and Congress over the Emergency period and comparisons to authoritarian rule, jailed Member of Parliament and Awami Itihaad Party (AIP) leader Engineer Rashid has announced a 24-hour hunger strike inside Tihar Jail, starting at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, June 28, until 8:00 p.m. on Sunday, June 29.

According to AIP Chief Spokesperson Inam Un Nabi, Engineer Rashid made this decision known during a recent meeting with his family, emphasising the duplicity of both the BJP and Congress in accusing each other of undermining democracy while remaining complicit in suppressing the voices of Kashmiris. “It is unfortunate that both parties are leaving no stone unturned to accuse each other of bulldozing liberty, freedom, and fundamental rights during their respective regimes. Yet, both are partners in crime when it comes to snatching the constitutional, democratic, and human rights of Kashmiris,” Engineer Rashid stated.

He further remarked, “While the BJP correctly highlights the atrocities committed during the 1975 Emergency, it conveniently forgets how it has treated Kashmiris over the past 11 years—jailing legitimate political voices, silencing dissent, and branding political beliefs as criminality. Congress and others, on the other hand, accuse the Modi government of imposing an undeclared emergency but remain silent about the hundreds of Kashmiris languishing in Tihar and other prisons under draconian laws like UAPA, simply for their political beliefs.”

Engineer Rashid's hunger strike aims to remind the people of India that while debates rage over the Emergency of 1975 and the suppression of dissent under the Modi government, the ongoing denial of rights to Kashmiris since the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, must not be forgotten. He has formally conveyed his decision regarding the hunger strike to the jail authorities.