Delhi, June 27 -- Amid the ongoing political slugfest between BJP and Congress over the 1975 Emergency and allegations of authoritarianism, jailed Member of Parliament and Awami Itihaad Party (AIP) President Engineer Rashid has announced that he will observe a 24-hour hunger strike inside Tihar Jail, from 8:00 p.m. Saturday, June 28 to 8:00 p.m. Sunday, June 29, in protest of the continued denial of democratic rights to Kashmiris.

This hunger strike also seeks to highlight the deafening silence of national parties about the hundreds of Kashmiris languishing in Tihar Jail and other prisons under draconian laws like UAPA, merely for holding political beliefs.

According to AIP Chief Spokesperson Inam Un Nabi, Engineer Rashid conveyed his d...