The news of Kashmiri model Tariq Dar's release was greeted in Jammu and Kashmir. Everyone in the State was delighted that "an innocent Kashmiri has been set free".
Tariq’s younger brother Imtiyaz Ahmad was very happy and described the release as a "triumph of truth and innocence."
Imitiyaz told Hindustan Times that the "pressure of Kashmiri leadership, ranging from Farooq Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti, worked in the release of my brother. We were constantly telling that he is innocent, but our word was not trusted."
"Finally, they discovered that charges against him were without any basis, and he was freed, I am very happy," he said and his jubilation was audible even on phone.
Leadership in Jammu has hailed the release of model Tariq Dar as "good news" for the people of Kashmir as also a manifestation of the fact many Kashmiris studying and doing business in other parts of the country are harassed and jailed despite being innocents.
"Tariq Dar’s case is an example of the fact that how the innocent Kashmiris are harassed and jailed," said JKLF Chairman Yasin Malik, who had made a special plea for his release to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
An elated Imitiyaz Ahmad, younger brother of Tariq, said, "It is a victory of innocence and truth."
{{/usCountry}}An elated Imitiyaz Ahmad, younger brother of Tariq, said, "It is a victory of innocence and truth."
{{/usCountry}}Shabir Shah of Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party (JKDFP) said that while this is matter of "great relief that an innocent Kashmiri has been set free, but the question arises, why an innocent was arrested in the first place?"
Shabir Shah said that there are "many more innocent Kashmiris suffering in Indian jails, they too should be released."