Kashmir MP Ruhullah writes to Amit Shah, urges proper medical care for Shabir Shah

Srinagar, June 25: Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha) from Srinagar, wrote to Home Minister Amit Shah, expressing serious concern about the deteriorating health of Shabir Ahmad Shah, 70, who has been incarcerated since 2017. He urged the Union Home Minister to provide the Hurriyat leader with dignified medical care.

In a letter addressed to Home Minister Amit Shah, Ruhullah Mehdi emphasized that Shabir Shah is undergoing serious medical conditions including Prostate Cancer for which doctors have recommended him three surgeries.

“Shabir Ahmad Shah is now 70 years old. By every humane and legal standard he is entitled to medical treatment with dignity and fairness. His doctors have recommended three surgeries for serious medical conditions which include life-threatening prostate cancer. Despite the gravity of his condition, he remains incarcerated since 2017, without family support. During his medical visit to Safdarjung Hospital on May 1, 2025, his family has alleged that he was subjected to harassment and degrading treatment by escorting officers, and that access to his medical records has also been withheld from them.” Mehdi wrote.

“Our country has legal and moral obligations, under both its Constitution and international treaties to ensure that prisoners are treated with humanity. Article 10(1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which India is a party, mandates that prisoners must be “treated with humanity and with respect for the inherent dignity of the human person.” The Nelson Mandela Rules (Rules 24 and 26) mandate that prisoners should receive the same standard of health care available to the general population. In Shabir Shah’s case, one can quote multiple such obligations that appear to have been blatantly contravened.” it said.

He added that There are clear precedents in domestic law in support of fair medical treatment of undertrials. Zahoor Watali and Gautam Navlakha were both granted house arrest on medical and humanitarian grounds by Indian courts. These decisions acknowledge that incarceration must not come at the cost of life and dignity, particularly when there is no proven risk of escape or subversion. With the same consideration can it not be said then, for Shah, whose legal status remains that of an undertrial, is a question of his basic human rights?

I urge you to ensure that Shabir Shah is provided dignified medical care in a facility equipped for cancer treatment. The measure of a nation is how it treats its weakest. Let us not fail that test, Mehdi concluded the letter.