Srinagar, Feb 10 (KNO): Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) Sopore, Irshad Rasool Kar on Tuesday urged the government to bring back prisoners lodged outside Jammu and Kashmir to Valley jails, citing serious humanitarian and medical concerns.
Raising the issue during the ongoing Assembly session, Sopore MLA, as reported by the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), said several prisoners were suffering from acute medical and psychological problems while lodged in jails outside the Union Territory.
He appealed to the government to ensure that such inmates, especially those with health issues, were shifted back to jails in the Valley for proper care and family access.
Kar objected to remarks made by some legislators suggesting that sending people to jail reforms them and makes them better human beings. He termed such statements hurtful.
“In a society where a youth is sent to jail and later attempts suicide or returns so broken that parents have to look after him like a child, what message are we giving?” he asked, calling the situation unfortunate.
He said many youths lodged in jails had already spent a large part of their lives behind bars, yet their cases had not progressed in courts. The prolonged incarceration is a major cause of stress and mental illness among prisoners, he said.
The Sopore MLA urged the government to ensure proper medical treatment and regular medication for prisoners from Jammu and Kashmir. He cited several instances of inmates suffering from stress-related disorders and self-harm.
Kar, during his speech, also pitched strongly for granting district status to Sopore, citing its size, congestion and economic importance. "Sopore is a large and densely populated constituency and houses Asia’s largest fruit mandi," he said.
The MLA added that decongestion of the town and restructuring of the fruit mandi have been discussed repeatedly, but the core demand of district status remains unmet.
He said people of Sopore have been raising long-standing demands, including district status, a university campus at Wadura and restoration of rights which, he said, were denied for years.
Highlighting political participation, Kar said Sopore has witnessed a historic shift, stating that the said constituency, which earlier recorded zero per cent voting turnout, registered the highest polling this time.
"People placed their trust in the National Conference with the hope of protection of their rights and revival of democratic processes," Kar said. He thanked the Chief Minister for approving an Ayurvedic Medical College for Sopore and for initiating beautification works around Wular Lake.
Responding to criticism that the budget was a copy-and-paste exercise, MLA Kar asked critics to visit Sopore to assess development works. He said there is not a single project in his constituency that is stalled. "Decades-old bridges, health infrastructure projects and other development works are all under active progress," he said—(KNO)