IMPHAL, January 9: An Independent candidate of the Jammu and Kashmir assembly was denied permission by the state government to meet with Irom Chanu Sharmila who is in judicial custody and lodged at JNIMS security ward today.
This was disclosed by the MLA during a meeting with this IFP reporter.
Engineer Hashid, MLA of Langate constituency Kupawara district in North Kashmir arrived in Imphal yesterday along with four other persons from Kashmir to meet Irom Sharmila who is fasting for repeal of AFSPA. “I had approached the state government through the Additional Assembly Secretariat but permission has been denied and I have been merely told that the process to meet Sharmila is very long and takes time,” he said while adding that it is very unfortunate that they were not able to meet her. “We wanted to give our salutations to Irom Sharmila and to pay solidarity to her struggle against the AFSPA,” said the MLA who had come all the way from Jammu and Kashmir by road.
Expressing his support for Sharmila in her struggle against AFSPA, he said that he would meet Sharmila`s brother, Irom Singhajit while the team would go to the Sharmila house to meet her mother and other family members before leaving Imphal tomorrow
Engineer Hashid, further added that he also had interaction programs with various civil society organization of the state and youths at the state youth hostel today evening regarding the imposition of the draconian law in the North Eastern states and J&K as many people have been affected by the Act for the past many years. “Many innocent people has been killed in the name of the law and all of us need to fight collectively and co-ordinate against the AFSPA,” he added.