Gilani, others condemn social media gag on IOK employees
ISLAMABAD, (MILLAT ONLINE):The Chairman of All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC), Syed Ali Gilani and other Hurriyat leaders and organizations in Indian occupied Kashmir, have condemned in strong terms the social media gag on employees by the puppet authorities terming it the worst form of state terrorism.
According to Kashmir Media Service, Syed Ali Gilani in a statement issued in Srinagar said that the gag was aimed at concealing harsh realities and atrocities perpetrated by the Indian troops in occupied Kashmir. He said that the puppet authorities were trampling fundamental rights and pushing the territory to the Stone Age.
“The gag order is unjustified, illogical and unconstitutional. The authorities are hell bent to create graveyard-like silence by shielding the criminals,” he added.
The spokesman of High Court Bar Association of the territory in a statement in Srinagar, denouncing the gag said the move undemocratic because it infringes the right to freedom of speech and expression guaranteed to every human being, both under domestic and international laws.
“This gag order is also contrary to the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the rule of law and no civilized society in the world will approve it,” he added.
Renowned lawyer, Zafar Ahmed Shah, in a media interview in Srinagar said the order is vulnerable to challenge on grounds that it violates the freedom of expression of a person.
“Every public servant has two profiles. One profile is that he is working for a government and therefore becomes a government servant. The other profile is that he is also a citizen of a state where he lives.
Now what the order says is that if you are a public servant, you will not speak on political issues. But what about a person who on one hand is a public servant and on the other is also a citizen of a state. Does that mean that his rights as a citizen have been suspended?” he asked.
Zafar Shah maintained that there are apprehensions that the order can be a part of design to gradually arrest such statements which have political overtones.