New Delhi, Mar 11 (NVI): The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday sought life imprisonment for Kashmiri separatist leader and Dukhtaran-e-Millat chief Asiya Andrabi following her conviction in a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), alleging that she conspired to wage war against India.
The submissions were made before Additional Sessions Judge Chander Jit Singh, who is hearing arguments on the quantum of sentence against Andrabi and her two associates, Sofi Fehmeeda and Nahida Nasreen. The trio had been convicted by the court in January this year.
The NIA told the court that the accused were part of a deep-rooted conspiracy against the Government of India and had used social media platforms and public gatherings to propagate anti-India narratives with the alleged support of entities based abroad.
According to the agency, the banned organisation Dukhtaran-e-Millat (DEM) was used to incite unrest and promote the secession of Jammu and Kashmir from India. It also alleged links with Pakistan-based elements, including UN-designated terrorist Hafiz Saeed, founder of Lashkar-e-Taiba.
Opposing the NIA’s demand for life imprisonment, the defence counsel argued that the prosecution had failed to establish that the speeches or social media posts by the accused directly incited violence.
After hearing arguments from both sides, the court reserved its order and listed the matter for March 24 for pronouncement of the sentence.(NVI)
