News / India

Indian forces detained 150 children in Kashmir

Tuesday, 01 October 2019 7:08 PM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 01 October 2019 7:14 PM ]

Kashmiri children study at a private home tuition center during a lockdown, on the outskirts of Srinagar, Kashmir, on September 2, 2019. (File photo by AFP)

Police in Indian-administered Kashmir have detained 144 children since early August, when the New Delhi government scrapped the disputed region’s semi-autonomy and imposed a lockdown.

The Jammu and Kashmir High Court’s four-member Juvenile Justice Committee said in a September 26 report that some children were listed as having been taken into so-called preventive detention, while others had been held for various alleged criminal offences.

A large number of the children were arrested from the region’s main city of Srinagar. Among those detained was a nine-year-old.

Police alleged that some of the children were involved in stone pelting, rioting, and causing damage to public and private property.

According to police, all those arrested and lodged in police stations were released on the same day. As of September 25, only two children, both aged 17 years, were lodged in juvenile homes.

An earlier report, led by the National Federation of Indian Women, found that around 13,000 boys had been detained since Kashmir’s autonomous status was revoked in early August. The report detailed that boys — some as young as 14 — had been imprisoned for up to 45 days.

On August 5, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi revoked the semi-autonomy of Jammu and Kashmir. Following the move, India deployed troops to the region to stymie potential protests. The government in New Delhi also imposed severe restrictions on movements, and cut all landline, mobile phone, and internet connections.