Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief Yasin Malik has told the Delhi High Court that far from being a terrorist, he was repeatedly engaged by successive Indian governments for peace talks on Kashmir.
In written submissions filed in response to the National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) plea seeking the death penalty against him, Malik claimed that six governments, from VP Singh to Manmohan Singh, had involved him in peace initiatives.
He said his engagement began in the early 2000s, when then Intelligence Bureau (IB) Special Director Ajit Doval met him in jail to convey the Vajpayee government’s interest in dialogue. Malik said Doval later arranged meetings with IB Director Shyamal Dutta and National Security Advisor Brajesh Mishra, who sought his support for the Ramzan ceasefire.
According to Malik, he also held meetings with Congress leader Sonia Gandhi and Left parties in opposition to build consensus for peace. In 2002, he launched a signature campaign promoting non-violence in Jammu and Kashmir, claiming to have collected 1.5 million signatures over two-and-a-half years.
Malik further alleged that in 2006, during a Pakistan visit for earthquake relief, the IB asked him to meet Hafiz Saeed and other militant leaders. He said he later briefed then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and NSA NK Narayanan on the meeting, but the interaction was “later distorted to brand me a terrorist.”
The JKLF chief also argued that after the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A, the 2006 meeting was used out of context to justify UAPA charges against him.
In his affidavit, Malik wrote that he was prepared to face capital punishment if imposed. “If my death finally gives respite to some, let it be so. I shall go with a smile but with pride and honour,” he stated, likening himself to JKLF founder Maqbool Bhat, who was executed in 1984.
The Delhi High Court is hearing the NIA’s appeal to enhance Malik’s life sentence, awarded in 2022, to the death penalty. The trial court had held that his case did not fall in the “rarest of rare” category. Malik has been directed to file his reply by November 10.
Earlier this year, a tribunal extended the ban on JKLF for another five years, saying “no tolerance can be shown” to organisations promoting secessionism.
