“A Cry for Freedom from Tihar Jail: The Case of Yasin Malik”
Written by: Shumaila Azam Khan
The history of Kashmir’s freedom struggle would remain incomplete without the name of Muhammad Yasin Malik. As the founding leader of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) and a staunch advocate of freedom of thought, Yasin Malik not only took up arms against India’s occupation in his youth but later chose the path of non-violence in 1994. Since then, he has led a peaceful political movement aimed at securing the right to self-determination for the people of Jammu and Kashmir — a right enshrined in United Nations resolutions yet still denied.
In 2022, a Delhi court sentenced Yasin Malik to life imprisonment on charges of terrorism, conspiracy, and money laundering. He is currently confined in India’s infamous Tihar Jail, the same prison where Maqbool Bhat and Afzal Guru were executed and buried. History, it seems, is repeating itself. Once again, a Kashmiri leader has been silenced through fabricated charges and political manipulation. The decades-old case from 1990, accusing Malik of involvement in the killing of four Indian Air Force personnel, was resurrected after thirty years — not for justice, but as an act of political vengeance. Despite years of interrogation, torture, and detention, India failed to produce any credible evidence against him. When all else failed, an outdated case was revived to justify his imprisonment.
Yasin Malik regards himself as the political successor of Maqbool Bhat, who embraced martyrdom in Tihar Jail in 1984. Neither before nor after that have India’s oppressive tactics been able to erase the dream of freedom from Kashmiri hearts. Today, Yasin Malik stands not only as a living inspiration for Kashmiris but also as a global symbol of resistance for oppressed people everywhere.
The judicial proceedings against Yasin Malik violated the very essence of justice. He was denied the right to a fair defense, held in solitary confinement, and deprived of medical care despite his deteriorating health. These injustices expose how the Indian judicial system has been weaponized to serve political interests where verdicts against pro-freedom Kashmiris are predetermined by state policy rather than guided by law or conscience.
Institutions such as the United Nations, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Amnesty International and other human rights organizations have long acknowledged the plight of the Kashmiri people. Yet, when it comes to practical action, the world remains silent. In Yasin Malik’s case too, there has been no resolution, no condemnation, and no serious intervention. This silence is not neutrality — it is complicity.
India’s treatment of Yasin Malik is a blatant violation of the Geneva Conventions, which mandate humane treatment, fair trial, and medical assistance for prisoners. The international community must hold India accountable and ensure that Malik and other political prisoners in Kashmir are treated in accordance with international humanitarian law.
Though frail and ailing, Yasin Malik’s spirit remains unbroken. If India could not silence Maqbool Bhat or Afzal Guru, it will not succeed in breaking Yasin Malik. His struggle is not merely personal — it is the collective voice of an entire nation yearning for freedom, a voice that cannot be imprisoned, silenced, or subdued.
