Global rights bodies call for release of Kashmir-based activist Khurram Parvez
The Hindu
NIA’s move to arrest Parvez elicits sharp reactions from across the world
Rights bodies and activists, including the United Nations Special Rapporteur, on Tuesday reacted sharply to the arrest of Kashmir-based human rights activist ,(44) by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday.
“I’m hearing disturbing reports that Khurram Parvez was arrested today [Monday] in Kashmir and is at risk of being charged by authorities in India with terrorism-related crimes. He’s not a terrorist, he’s a human rights defender,” Mary Lawlor, U.N. Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders, said in a tweet.
The Rafto Foundation, a body working for the global promotion of human rights, in a statement, appealed to India to “immediately release Mr. Parvez,” who was working as programme coordinator of the Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS) and Chairman of the Board of Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD).