NIA arrests J&K human rights activist on terror funding charge

Human rights activist Khurram Parvez was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Srinagar on Monday (November 22) in a case pertaining to terror funding, under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

The NIA has charged Parvez under Section 120B (party to a criminal conspiracy) and Section 121 (waging war against the state) of the Indian Penal Code and under Section 17 (funding a terrorist act), Section 18 (conspiracy), Section 18B (recruitment for the commission of a terrorist act), Section 30 (membership of a terrorist organization) and Section 40 (offences for raising funds for a terrorist organization) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

The NIA team also searched the office of the Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS) in Srinagar. Parvez is the programme coordinator of the JKCCS, a federation of human rights groups.

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Parvez’s family was told that he will be taken to New Delhi on Tuesday (November 23).

Last year, in October, the NIA had raided Parvez’s house and office in Srinagar. In 2016, following protests over the killing of militant commander Burhan Wani, Parvez was booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA) by the then Mehbooba Mufti-led government.

Besides being a ‘program coordinator’ at JKCCS, Parvez is also the ‘chairperson’ at the Philippines-based Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD). He is a recipient of the Reebok Human Rights Award, which recognises activists “under the age of 30 who fought for human rights through non-violent means.”