Waheed Para

Waheed ur Rehman Para (وحید اررحمان پارہ) is an Indian politician of Jammu and Kashmir People's Democratic Party and member of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Pulwama constituency. He is the legislative party leader of the Jammu and Kashmir People's Democratic Party in the J&K assembly.

Born and raised in Naira village of South Kashmir's Pulwama district, he joined the Jammu and Kashmir People's Democratic Party in 2013 and was subsequently appointed its youth wing president. In the following years, he served as the political analyst to then J&K CM Mufti Mohammad Sayeed in 2015 and as secretary J&K Sports Council in 2016.

Para contested the 2024 Indian general election from the Srinagar Parliamentary Constituency as a candidate of the PDP securing the runner up position with 1.68 lakh votes.

He was arrested by National Investigation Agency on 25 November 2020 for alleged terror links, and was again rearrested by J&K Police after receiving bail from Special NIA Court. Waheed was released on bail by the Jammu and Kashmir High Court in May 2022, and was also selected as the inaugural Yale Peace Fellow at Yale University's International Leadership Center in 2023.

Political career

Waheed had been informally associated with Jammu and Kashmir People's Democratic Party since 2002 but formally joined the party in 2013 and was subsequently appointed its Youth Wing President.

He is believed to have played a major role in Jammu and Kashmir People's Democratic Party's electoral success in 2014 parliamentary and assembly elections. He was appointed as political analyst to then J&K CM Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, and later served as Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir State Sports Council from July 2016 to 2018. He took part in 2015 UNCCC, held in Paris, as a special representative from the state of J&K In 2018. Waheed had also survived an attack on his life after terrorists closely fired at his vehicle in Central Kashmir's Budgam district.

Following arrest by the National Investigation Agency, he won the DDC Elections, 2020 from Pulwama constituency while being under custody. After remaining incarcerated at Srinagar's central jail for over 17 months, he was released after the Jammu and Kashmir High Court granted him bail and observed "The evidence as is gathered by the prosecution is too sketchy to be believed prima facie true, that too, with a view to deny bail to the appellant."

Waheed has been an International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) fellow, and was amongst a couple of politicians invited by the U.S. Government from India for the program. Para had also been invited for the Australia-India Youth Dialogue (AIYD) 2019, which is a track-two young leaders’ dialogue held every alternate year, but owing to his detention following 5 August 2019 was not allowed to attend the conference.

Para contested the 2024 Indian general election from the Srinagar Parliamentary Constituency as a candidate of the PDP securing 1.68 lakh votes.

He won the 2024 Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly elections from Pulwama constituency, and currently serves as the member of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly (MLA) representing Pulwama.

He became the first elected legislator from Jammu and Kashmir to introduce a resolution to condemen whatever was done on 5 August 2019 and oppose the revocation of J&K's special status (Article 370) with other constitutional guarantees through the J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019 on the first day of Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly's session at Srinagar. The resolution called for, "restoration of special status and all constitutional guarantees granted to Jammu and Kashmir in their original, pristine form"

On 14 November 2024, he became the youngest legislative party head in J&K Assembly at the age 36, after being appointed the same by Jammu and Kashmir People's Democratic Party.

Detention

Waheed was first arrested on 4 August 2019, as the Government of India moved to abrogate Article 370. Like other mainstream political leaders in the region, Parra was initially detained at the SKICC and the MLA's hostel in Srinagar, before being placed under house arrest.

On 26 November 2020, two days after filing his nomination papers for the District Development Council (DDC) elections, Parra was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Despite being in custody, he went on to win the DDC elections in 2020.

Shortly after being granted bail by the Special NIA Court in Jammu, Parra was re-arrested by the Jammu and Kashmir Police.

During his detention, he was reportedly subjected to harsh interrogation conditions, including being kept in freezing temperatures. Allegations of abusive interrogations lasting up to 12 hours surfaced, with Parra being questioned about his participation in a virtual meeting with United Nations Security Council members, where he had raised concerns regarding the Government of India’s actions in Jammu and Kashmir, and border tensions with China.

In July 2021, five Special Rapporteurs of the United Nations sought an official reply from the Government of India on reports of torture meted out to him. The report highlighted serious accusations, including the claim that "Para had been held in a dark underground cell at subzero temperatures, deprived of sleep, and subjected to physical abuse, including being kicked, slapped, beaten with rods, and hung upside down. His alleged ill-treatment was documented, and he was reportedly required to meet with medical professionals due to the severity of the torture."

Waheed was eventually shifted to Srinagar's Central Jail, where he remained incarcerated for over 17 months. His release came after the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh granted him bail, stating that the evidence presented by the prosecution was "too sketchy" to justify his continued detention.

Despite being granted bail, he was disallowed to accompany his cancer hit father for treatment outside Jammu and Kashmir alongside not being allowed to also accompany his 8 year old nephew for treatment at AIIMS Delhi in 2023 - 2024 after repeated pleas, both of whom expired in month's time from each other.
File:Waheed Para with an elderly supporter.jpg, Waheed Para during 2024 Lok Sabha election campaigning at Pulwama
File:Waheed Para with a group of supporters at a rally in Srinagar.jpg, Waheed Para poses with suppoters at a rally in Srinagar (2019)
File:Waheed Para speech.jpg, Waheed Para addressing a crowd at Anantnag (2024)
File:Waheed Para amongst supporters.jpg, Waheed Para after winning elections from Pulwama

References

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People from Pulwama district
Jammu and Kashmir MLAs 2024–2029
Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party politicians
Living people
1988 births