Chief Justice Takes Up PIL Seeking Return of J&K Prisoners from Outside Jails

Jammu: The Jammu and Kashmir High Court, led by the Chief Justice, today heard a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by PDP President and former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, seeking the repatriation of J&K prisoners currently lodged in jails outside the Union Territory.

The petition, moved earlier this year, urges a compassionate and humane policy for detainees who, according to Mehbooba Mufti, remain confined in far-off prisons under difficult circumstances. The PDP leader was personally present during the hearing at the Jammu wing of the High Court.

In her plea, Mufti contends that the continued incarceration of Kashmiri prisoners in distant states, some more than a thousand kilometres away, violates their fundamental rights and imposes severe emotional and financial strain on their families. She has sought the transfer of these inmates to jails within Jammu and Kashmir to facilitate family access and ensure their well-being.

According to sources as per news agency CNS, the matter was taken up before the Chief Justice for consideration of maintainability and to issue further directions to the Union Territory administration and the Home Department. The government is expected to file a detailed reply on the next date of hearing.