A Kashmiri activist, Khurram Parvez has alleged that he was barred from boarding flight to Geneva by the immigration authorities at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport on Wednesday. The 39-year-old activist said that he was going to Geneva to attend the ongoing United Nations Human Rights Commission Session.

Parvez, who is a chairperson of the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances and Program coordinator of the Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society, said, “At around 1.30 am, as I was about to board my flight to Geneva, I was stopped at immigration and detained for one-and-a-half hours. The officer had stamped my boarding pass but they subsequently disallowed me to board the flight.”

However, his two other colleagues lawyers Parvez Imroz and Kartik Marukutla, were allowed to travel to Geneva. Parvez claimed, “Officers told me that due to orders from the Intelligence Bureau, I cannot travel to Geneva.” Deputy Commissioner of Police (FRRO) Prabhkar has refused to comment on the matter.

A statement issued by JKCCS said that he is ‘not being allowed to travel because has been highlighting violations of Human Rights’. Parvez said, “I was orally informed that immigration officers has instructions that he was not to be arrested, but that he should not be allowed to leave the country.”

The JKCCS said, “The Kashmiri members of the delegation, besides attending the UNHRC session, are scheduled to brief UN bodies including the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights regarding the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, particularly over the last two months.”