New Delhi, March 24 – A Delhi court on Tuesday sentenced Kashmiri separatist leader Asiya Andrabi to life imprisonment for offences including conspiracy to commit terrorist acts and waging war against the Government of India, while awarding 30-year jail terms to her associates Sofi Fehmeeda and Nahida Nasreen.
Delivering the order on the sentence, Additional Sessions Judge Chander Jit Singh of the Karkardooma Courts held that the actions of the convicts struck at the "very existence of India" and were aimed at the secession of Jammu and Kashmir, an integral part of the country.
The court stated that the evidence on record demonstrated that they had "not abhorred violence" and, in fact, had indirectly promoted it by glorifying slain militants and propagating a secessionist ideology.
"The actions of the convict, as recorded, may not apparently be the direct cause of inciting violence, but infusing the minds of people, particularly the youth, with the idea that Kashmir is not part of India and that India has illegally and hostilely occupied Kashmir, can evoke sentiments that may lead them to adopt all kinds of methods, including violence," the court observed.
The case arose out of an investigation in 2018 by the National Investigation Agency, which alleged that the banned outfit Dukhtaran-e-Millat (DeM), headed by Andrabi, was using social media, public speeches, and other platforms to advocate for Jammu and Kashmir's merger with Pakistan.
The prosecution presented various videos, online posts, and other material purportedly showing the accused eulogizing militants, inciting unlawful activities such as stone-pelting, and promoting narratives based on the two-nation theory.
Andrabi was found guilty under various provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), including Sections 18 (conspiracy for terrorist acts) and 20 (membership of a terrorist organization), along with IPC offences such as criminal conspiracy and waging war against the state.
Fehmeeda and Nasreen were also convicted under multiple provisions of the anti-terror law and the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Rejecting any leniency in sentencing, the court, in view of the gravity of the offences, observed that activities aimed at destabilizing the nation and promoting secessionist ideology warranted stringent punishment.
Andrabi, who founded the all-women separatist outfit in 1987, was arrested in April 2018. The organization had largely become defunct following her arrest, the court noted.
