Kashmiri Separatist Leader Yasin Malik Convicted in Terror Funding Case

A court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) convicted Malik after he pleaded guilty.

File photo of Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front chief Yasin Malik.

(Photo: IANS)

A court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday, 19 May, convicted separatist leader Yasin Malik a week after he pleaded guilty in a case related to alleged terrorism and secessionist activities in the Kashmir Valley.

A hearing on the sentence is scheduled to take place on 25 May. The maximum punishment he could receive is life imprisonment.

The court also sought an affidavit from Malik regarding his financial assets, as per LiveLaw. The NIA has been asked to submit a report on his financial assessment.

The Case

Militant group Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front's (JKLF) chief Yasin Malik is accused of terrorism and secessionist activities in the Kashmir valley in 2017. According to the chargesheet, various terrorist organisations such as Lashkar-e-Toiba(LeT), Hizb-ul-Mujahiddin (HM), JKLF, and Jaish-e- Mohd (JeM) had attacked security forces and civilians in Kashmir.

The charges against Malik are based on Section 16 (terrorist act), 17 (raising funds for the terrorist act), 18 (conspiracy to commit terrorist act), and 20 (being a member of a terrorist gang or organisation) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and Sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), and 124-A (sedition) of the Indian Penal Code.

Malik on 10 May had pleaded guilty to all the charges, including those under the UAPA. His counsel told a Delhi court that he would not be contesting the charges levelled against him.

The court also formally framed the charges against other Kashmiri separatist leaders, including Farooq Ahmed Dar alias Bitta Karate, Shabbir Shah, Masarat Alam, Md Yusuf Shah, Aftab Ahmad Shah, Altaf Ahmad Shah, Nayeem Khan, Md Akbar Khanday, Raja Mehrajuddin Kalwal, Bashir Ahmad Bhat, Zahoor Ahmad Shah Watali, Shabir Ahmad Shah, Abdul Rashid Sheikh, and Naval Kishore Kapoor.