Muslim outfit’s assets worth over 11 million USD seized in Kashmir
Amid the ongoing crackdown on journalists, human rights defenders, and Muslim organizations in Kashmir, the State Investigation Agency on Saturday listed 11 properties of the banned Muslim outfit Jamaat-e-Islami Kashmir in the Anantnag district and barred it from usage.
The properties, estimated at 11 million USD, were confiscated under the draconian Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).
Jamaat-e-Islami, the largest politico-religious organization in Jammu and Kashmir, had managed a vast network of schools and other social infrastructure before it was banned in 2019. About 200 properties have been identified in total.
Three weeks ago, nine properties — including two school buildings belonging to the group — were seized in the Shopian district.
Muslim man dies during police interrogation in Madhya Pradesh
A Muslim man died during police interrogation in Madhya Pradesh’s Guna district after he was arrested on his way back from a religious congregation in Bhopal city.
30-year-old Izrael Khan fell unconscious during the interrogation and was taken to the district hospital. The doctors at the hospital declared him dead.
The victim’s family reported seeing injuries all over his body. “His hands and legs were bruised and looked as if he was repeatedly hit with a baton. There were bruise marks from the belt on his back also,” his father Munawwar Khan said.
Family members of the deceased claim that seven police officials — two of whom have an association with the Hindu supremacist paramilitary organization Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) – severely assaulted Izrael, leading to his death.
However, police have blatantly denied any wrongdoing.
Muslim student subjected to Islamophobic abuse by university faculty
A Muslim student from a reputed university in Karnataka state was subjected to Islamophobic abuse by a faculty inside the classroom.
A viral video shows the student calling out Islamophobic remarks by the faculty at the Manipal Institute of Technology.
“Being a Muslim and facing this every day is not funny,” the student can be heard saying in the video. “You can’t joke about my religion, that too in such a derogatory manner… You can’t call me by the name of a terrorist.”
The professor had asked the student his name, and on hearing a Muslim name, compared the student to Ajmal Kasab, an accused terrorist who played a role in a deadly bomb attack in 2008.
“How can you call me like that in front of so many people?” the student said. “You are a professional, you are teaching. A sorry doesn’t change how you think or how you portray yourself here.”
After the video of the incident went viral on social media, the school released a formal apology, stating that an inquiry is being conducted and that the offending professor has been temporarily barred from teaching.
Prisoner of conscience Anand Teltumbde walks out of jail after 957 days
Prisoner of conscience and prominent human rights defender Anand Teltumbde was released from prison after spending 957 days in jail under false anti-terror charges.
Teltumbde was arrested in 2020 under the draconian UAPA and is the third of the 16 human rights defenders arrested in the case to be released on bail. He is the first to be granted bail on the grounds of merit.
He has extensively advocated for the rights of Dalits and is also a longtime critic of India’s Hindu supremacist Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The arrests of numerous high-profile activists and lawyers under false charges in what is known as the Bhima Koregaon case have been condemned internationally by European Union parliamentarians, United Nations experts, and Nobel laureates.
Father Stan Swamy, a renowned Jesuit priest known for his decades-long activism, died in prison last year after being arrested on false charges in this case.
