SRINAGAR: A 29-year-old Kashmiri youth working as a nurse specialist in Saudi Arabia has been detained by authorities, allegedly over a social media post. The youth has been identified as Amjad Ali Bhat, a resident of Gund Ibrahim, Pattan in north Kashmir's Baramulla district.
He was employed as a nurse specialist in Dammam with a Saudi-based healthcare firm, Saudi Response Plus Medical, since June last year.
The family has sought the help of the Ministry of External Affairs to facilitate his release. Amjad's family said he was detained by the Saudi civil defence personnel on March 25.
“We came to know about his detention through his colleagues, two days after the incident. For two days, we were frantically calling on his mobile but it was not reachable. Then we called his colleague and he informed us about his detention,” his sister told TNIE. She said they don’t know the reason for his detention.
According to J&K Students Association national convenor Nasir Khuhami, Amjad’s detention is believed to have followed his social media post on Iran's assassinated Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
No formal charges or official communication regarding the grounds of his detention have been conveyed to his family or employer, he said.
Amjad’s sister said they approached the company that had hired Amjad, but the HR informed the family that they don’t know the reason for his detention.
“We are in regular touch with the company but they say they too don’t know why he was detained,” she said.
She said that despite repeated attempts to seek clarity, and with even the employer unaware of the reason for his detention, the family remains worried about Amjad’s safety.
The lack of information about his whereabouts and condition has left the family in profound distress. The family has approached the Indian Embassy in Riyadh and the Ministry of External Affairs for help.
“We appeal to the government to ensure his safety and facilitate his early release from Saudi detention,” Amjad’s sister said.
Meanwhile, the J&K Students Association has written to External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar, seeking urgent intervention in the detention of the Kashmiri youth.
The Association urged the MEA to take up the matter with Saudi authorities at the highest diplomatic level to seek clarity on circumstances surrounding his detention.
It requested that the Indian Embassy in Riyadh and its consulate in Dammam be directed to urgently establish contact with him and ascertain his well-being.
The Association appealed that Amjad be provided with necessary consular access and legal assistance in accordance with international norms and that efforts be made to facilitate his early release if no substantial charges are established against him.