Srinagar, Kashmiri journalist Asif Sultan, who was detained under the controversial Public Safety Act (PSA), has been released from jail after more than five years of illegal detention. His release comes months after the High Court in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir quashed his detention, highlighting procedural failures by the detaining authorities.
According to Kashmir Media Service, Sultan was incarcerated in Ambedkar Nagar district jail in Uttar Pradesh since his arrest in 2018. Despite the IIOJK High Court quashing his PSA detention on December 11 last year for not adhering to procedural requirements, Sultan remained in jail for an additional three months awaiting clearances from the IIOJK administration. He was finally released on Wednesday.
Sultan’s arrest by Indian police occurred during a nocturnal raid at his home in Srinagar’s Batamaloo area, on allegations of ‘harboring militants.’ He was subsequently charged under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Though granted bail by the High Court in 2021, he was re-detained under the PSA and transferred to the UP jail, a move that drew widespread criticism and highlighted the use of harsh laws against journalists in the region.
At the time of his arrest, Sultan was a reporter for the now-defunct ‘Kashmir Narrator’ magazine and had written a story on Burhan Wani, a youth leader whose death sparked widespread protests. Sultan’s detention separated him from his family, including his daughter, who was six months old at the time of his arrest and now, at six years old, scarcely recognizes him.
His prolonged detention drew attention from international bodies, including the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), which called for his immediate release. In 2019, Sultan was honored with the John Aubuchon Press Freedom Award by the National Press Club of America, underscoring the global concern over his imprisonment and the state of press freedom in Kashmir.
Sultan’s release marks a significant moment for journalism and human rights in the region, raising questions about the use of security laws and their impact on free expression and reporting in conflict zones.