Mehbooba Mufti writes to EAM Jaishankar, seeks his intervention in issuing her passport
Jammu, Feb 20: PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Monday sought External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's intervention for her passport, saying she has been waiting for it for the past three years to take her 80-year-old mother on a pilgrimage to Mecca.
In a letter to the minister, she said her passport's renewal has been pending as the Jammu and Kashmir CID gave an adverse report that issuing the travel document to her would undermine national security.
Mehbooba also highlighted the delay in issuing of passport to her daughter Iltija who wants to pursue higher studies outside the country.
"I am writing to you about a matter that has dragged on needlessly for the last three years, the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister said and added that "my mother (Gulshan Nazir) and I applied for passport renewal in March 2020".
"J&K CID gave an adverse report that issuing passports to my 80-year-old mother and me would undermine national security. In J&K, it has become the norm to arbitrarily reject passport applications of thousands, including journalists, students and others, by misusing national interest as a pretext," Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader said in her letter.
She said they moved the Jammu and Kashmir High Court and after the case "dragged" on for three years, the court gave clear directions that the Regional Passport Office in Srinagar should not operate as the CID's "mouthpiece" by denying passports on vague grounds.
"In my case, I was asked to approach the Passport Authority of India which I have done multiple times since 2021. Unfortunately, I have not received a positive response yet. The inordinate and deliberate delay in issuing my passport is a grave violation of my fundamental right," Mehbooba, who is currently in Jammu, said.
She said that "if suspending my basic rights in a democracy like ours is done with such brazen impunity and contempt, one cannot even imagine what an ordinary Kashmiri goes through".
"My daughter Iltija applied for her passport renewal in June 2022. Her application too is in limbo and it seems that the Passport Office in Srinagar is yet again failing to discharge its duty," the PDP leader said.
For the past three years, "I have been waiting eagerly to take my mother on a pilgrimage to Mecca", she said and added that "as a daughter, I feel pained and anguished to be unable to fulfil such a simple wish because of petty politics".
"I write to you hoping that you will look into the matter urgently," she said in her letter to the external affairs minister.
Last week, Iltija filed a petition in the high court for issuance of passport, pleading that she needs the travel document immediately to pursue her higher education outside the country.
The 35-year-old, in the plea, had said her passport expired on January 2 and she had applied for a fresh passport in advance on June 8 last year.
In March 2021, Mehbooba and her mother were refused passports after the Jammu and Kashmir Police cited an "adverse report".
Mehbooba's passport expired on May 31, 2019, and she had applied for a fresh passport on December 11 in the next year, while her mother, wife of former chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, had applied for a passport in 2020 to undertake the pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.
Mehbooba's passport application is still pending but authorities released the passport of her mother early this month after the high court passed fresh directions to the passport officer.
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B'luru: "Least priority, shifted late," says brother of patient who died in Ramaiah hospital fire
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Bengaluru: Hours after a fire broke out at the Critical Care Unit (CCU) of the MS Ramaiah Memorial Hospital on New BEL Road on Thursday, a 34-year-old patient, Sujay Sujathan Panicker, tragically passed away. His family has accused the hospital authorities of negligence, which they claim led to his death.
The fire at Ramaiah Memorial Hospital is believed to have been caused by a short circuit. Initial reports suggested that there were no casualties in the incident.
Sujay, originally from Kollam in Kerala, had been residing in Bengaluru with his family since 2004. He was undergoing treatment for pneumonia, Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), and H1N1 since September 1 at the hospital.
Sujay's wife and father released a video accusing the hospital of negligence. In the video, his wife, Rohini Jayan, alleged that the hospital authorities took no action against those responsible for the fire.
Sujay’s brother, Sujin Sujathan Panicker, speaking to Vartha Bharathi, detailed the family’s ordeal. He said that despite his sister-in-law requesting assistance during the chaos, the hospital staff pushed her away, assuring her that all patients had been safely evacuated to the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU). However, Sujin claims that his sister-in-law did not see Sujay being shifted.
He further stated, “Sometime later, when a doctor arrived, she (Rohini) inquired about Sujay. It was only after the doctor questioned the staff that they rushed to evacuate him.”
Sujin added that by the time his brother was evacuated, 50 minutes had already passed since the fire broke out. "He was still inside, while all the other patients were taken out first. He was admitted to the hospital with a respiratory illness, yet he was given the least priority during the chaos. He was the last one to be evacuated."
He also claimed that Rohini had already noticed that Sujay’s condition had deteriorated and believed he had passed away, though the hospital authorities did not officially declare his death.
Sujin further stated that the hospital authorities called him and his father to the board room at the 8th floor of the hospital, where senior executives and doctors who had treated Sujay were present “During the interaction they (hospital authorities) claimed that Sujay was still alive and that his condition had worsened amid the smoke and that his chances of survival were less, which was not true.”
"Despite staff being present to evacuate my brother, they remained negligent. The fire broke out at 1:00 p.m., so why did it take 50 minutes to get him out? He was in a corner bed in the CCU, and it seemed they either overlooked the room or ignored it. Even after repeated requests, it took them 50 minutes to evacuate him," Sujin added.
Sujin also expressed concerns that the hospital authorities might attempt to influence the investigation. "They can influence anyone—any hospital, any report."
At the time of the interview, Sujin stated that neither anyone from the government nor from the health department had contacted the family.
A complaint has been filed in connection with the incident at the Sadashivanagar police station. "The statements of the family members have been recorded, and an investigation into the matter is underway. An FIR has been lodged under Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) Section 106 (causing death due to negligence)," said Sadashivanagar police station Sub-Inspector.
Meanwhile, officials from Ramaiah Memorial Hospital were unavailable for comment.
