Reacting to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) seeking death sentence for Jammu & Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief Yasin Malik, former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti and Peoples Conference chief Sajad Lone on Saturday sought review of the move.
Mehbooba tweeted, “In a democracy like India where even the assassins of a PM were pardoned, the case  of a political prisoner like Yasin Malik must be reviewed & reconsidered. The new political ikhwan gleefully supporting his hanging is a grave threat to our collective rights”.
NIA had on Friday moved the Delhi High Court seeking a death sentence for Kashmiri separatist leader Yasin Malik.
NIA had sought a death penalty for Yasin Malik, who was earlier sentenced to life imprisonment, before the trial court, but it was rejected.

In his lengthy reaction on Twitter, Sajad Lone said; “NIA plea on Yasin Malik is dangerous. It is a humble plea. Let u not be misled by fair-weather Kashmir experts. Please — every situation has a short term and a long term. Let the short term enforced calm not blind you to the possible long term turbulence (sic).”
“And May I very humbly ask  what about those who created Yasin. What about those who rigged elections held under Indian constitution  and  jailed, political workers, tortured them, tortured their families. And didn’t rest until they ensured that they push them to the wall — to the extent that they pick up arms. I don’t condone taking up arms. But can’t we condemn those who forced arms on to a young person.”
Lone wrote; “Are those rigged 1987 elections and in the process created hundreds and thousands of Yasin immune to prosecution. Are those who filled graveyards post-1987 outside the ambit of Law. Is it always the poor man’s son who has to face the law, who has to face the gallows (sic).
“We have been hearing threatening noises from the last nine years. Threatened to take action. Yet no action. Action will never be taken against them. Only threaten to take action”.
“Nine FIRs against Yasin when he had not even seen a gun. All FIRs pertaining to elections. But given an anti-national form and shape. And Y don’t you have the moral courage at least to do a basic research of the case filed against Yasin in the year 2001 or early 2002. It was the Vajpayee era and there was a pro-dialogue fervour. Talks of reconciliation was in the air.
And a desperate chief minister of that era was desperately desperate to stall, impede, sabotage any such reconciliatory move…..(sic),” Lone said in an apparent reference to Dr. Farooq Abdullah.
“Let us Kashmiris live in peace. No more experiments. We need oxygen from the rest of the country as we are gasping for political breath.  We cannot afford Kashmir to be the oxygen for the political landscape in the rest of the country.  Reminds me of Afzal Guroo and Congress’s hurry to execute him”, Lone added.

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