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Kashmiri activist Khurram Parvez and journalist Irfan Mehraj freed on bail, under tight curbs
7-27-2026
NEW DELHI — A prominent Kashmiri human rights activist and a journalist have been released on bail after years in custody in a case that has drawn international scrutiny over press freedom and rights work in Indian-controlled Kashmir.[aljazeera]
Khurram Parvez, a human rights defender linked to the Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society, and Irfan Mehraj, an independent journalist and researcher associated with the same group, were arrested in 2021 and 2023, respectively, under India’s anti-terror laws.[livemint]
The National Investigation Agency alleges the two used the rights group to fund militant-linked activity and promote a separatist agenda. Both men deny the allegations, and the case remains active in court.[aljazeera]
A lower court granted them bail on July 18, and the Delhi High Court later refused to suspend that order while adding stricter conditions, including limits on their movements.[aljazeera]
Their release comes amid continued concern from rights groups, which say Kashmir has seen a broader crackdown on activists, journalists and dissidents since India revoked the region’s special autonomous status in August 2019.[hrw]
Kashmir has been disputed since the 1947 partition of British India, with both India and Pakistan claiming the region in full. Armed insurgency in Indian-administered Kashmir has continued since 1989, making the territory one of South Asia’s most enduring and volatile conflicts.[hrw]
The case matters because it sits at the intersection of national security, civil liberties and the Kashmir dispute, and because it highlights the risks faced by journalists and human rights workers reporting on the region.[fidh]
A good final line for the story would be: The case is continuing, with the National Investigation Agency seeking to overturn the bail while Parvez and Mehraj remain under court restrictions.[livemint]
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