A Delhi court on Tuesday (March 24, 2026) sentenced Kashmiri separatist leader Asiya Andrabi to life imprisonment after convicting her in a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Andrabi is the chief of the banned all-women’s organization Dukhtaran-e-Millat (DEM).
The verdict was delivered by Additional Sessions Judge Chander Jit Singh of Karkardooma Court. The Judge also sentenced her associates, Sofi Fehmeeda and Naheeda Nasreen, to 30 years in prison.
The case stems from a 2018 FIR filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), which accused the trio of running DEM and promoting the secession of Jammu and Kashmir from India, allegedly through violent means. The central agency, during trial, submitted evidences like videos and social media posts from Facebook and Twitter, which allegedly praised militants such as Burhan Wani, encouraged stone-pelting, and expressed support for Pakistan.
The court framed charges including criminal conspiracy, waging war against the Government of India, sedition, promoting enmity between groups, disrupting national integration, and offences under the UAPA on the accused women.
After the conviction, the NIA sought life imprisonment for Andrabi, arguing that her actions amounted to waging war against India and that strict punishment was necessary to send a strong message against anti-state activities.
The women argued that they are educated and suffer from various health issues. However, the court observed that factors such as education and medical condition carry greater weight in cases involving isolated incidents, where the offence is seen as an exception in an otherwise law-abiding life. In this case, the court found that such considerations did not justify a lenient sentence.
“In the present matter, the conduct of convicts is not one off incident and is a continuous conduct adopted and carried out by the convicts. More so, the said conduct and activities of the convicts are admittedly done with all the knowledge of the activities and have been carried out voluntarily. The acts for which convicts have been found guilty are such which attack at the very existence of India and aims at secession of an integral part of India,” court said.
Noting that there is no doubt that there is nothing on record to show that convicts had used violence to achieve their nefarious design and aim but the material on record does reflect that convicts did not abhor the violence as such rather had indirectly promoted the use of violence by eulogizing the slain terrorists.
“The acts of the convict brought on record may not apparently be the direct cause of inciting violence but infusing the minds of Kashmiries especially the youngsters with the idea that Kashmir is not part of India and India has occupied the Kashmir illegally and in a hostile manner can evoke the sentiments of the people of Kashmir as well as it may lead them to use all kind of method including violence to seek the supposed liberation, the idea of which is wrongly seeded in their minds,” court said.