On Monday, the Jammu and Kashmir Students Association sent a legal notice to Turkey’s state-run media outlet TRT World for publishing fake images of students in the Agra Sedition Case and claimed compensation amounting to Rs 1 crore. The legal notice read that the Turkey-based outlet TRT World had broadcast fake images of three Kashmiri students falsely claiming that were arrested in Agra for cheering in support of the Pakistan cricket team in a recent T-20 World Cup Match.
According to the reports, the legal notice by the association was sent through their lawyer Aamir Masoodi who said that the students have been exposed to high risk and loss of career, education and reputation. The Association said that the TRT World had not verified the facts regarding the case and had broadcasted fake images of three Kashmiri students who are at present studying in Karnataka.
National Spokesperson of the Jammu and Kashmir Students Association Nasir Khuehami in the statement claimed that the three students have no direct or indirect connection to the case. He added that TRT World through its ulterior motives had affected the lives of three innocent Kashmiri students and their families.
Seeking an unconditional apology to the students, Khuehami stated that the photographs published by TRT World were circulated continuously for over 24 hours and the consequences faced by the families and innocent students are huge. “TRT must tender an unconditional apology, failing which we shall proceed with defamation proceedings as advised by our legal team”, he said.
The notice read, “TRT World displayed the photographs of other three Kashmiri students namely Talib Majeed, Basit Ahmad Sofi, claiming that they were languishing in jail and are facing sedition charges for praising Pakistan. The claim is totally baseless, highly libellous, and concocted”.
The legal notice further stated that the three students were all studying in Karnataka’s Hubbali under Prime Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme (PMSSS). According to the reports, they were maliciously arrested in the year 2020 for raising objectionable slogans. “They were released, shifted to the mainstream and are living their normal life peacefully,” it added.
In October last year, the three students named Arsheed Yusuf, Inayat Altaf Sheikh and Showkat Ahmed Ganai were arrested for allegedly sharing anti-India messages on WhatsApp after Pakistan’s victory against India in the T-20 World Cup Cricket Match. All in their twenties, the three students were enrolled at Raja Balwant Singh Engineering College in Agra in Uttar Pradesh state under a special scholarship programme meant for students from the conflict torn region.
They are currently lodged at the Agra district jail. They have been charged with cyber terrorism, sedition, promoting enmity between different groups, and making statements likely to cause alarm to the public.
