By
Sajjad Shaukat
The
11th of February is being celebrated as the martyrdom anniversary of Maqbool
Bhat who was hanged by the
then Indian regime on February 11, 1984 in Tihar Jail as the reprisal expressed
by New Delhi. He was hanged to take the revenge of the killing of an
Indian Diplomat by some unknown organization claiming to be Kashmiri. It
was an act of shame for a country called India, as even after his death, his
body was not handed over to his family and people, rather buried in Tihar Jail
complex.
People and civil society
of Jammu and Kashmir do respect him for his legendary struggle for the
restoration of freedom in Kashmir. He is now a hero and pioneer of the Kashmiri
nation.
In order to pay tribute
to Maqbool Bhat, People of Srinagar have already built and reserve a grave
for him in Martyrs Grave Yard of Eidgah, Srinagar. However, his formal burial
is still awaited.
Maqbool Bhat, also known
as Maqbool Butt was a Kashmiri freedom fighter and co-founder of the Jammu
Kashmir Liberation Front. He was a leading voice of the struggle for freedom
among the Kashmiris. In the year of 1962, Maqbool Bhat formed a movement called
Kashmir Independence Committee (KIC). This group was later merged into the
newly formed Jammu Kashmir Mahaz-Rayee-Shumari (Plebiscite Front) in Azad
Kashmir, which was a crusade for complete independence from India. He was
sentenced to death for murder by the Delhi High Court and hanged on 11 February
1984.
Prior to the publication
of ‘Shaoor e Farda’ (the vision of tomorrow) by Saeed Asad and Safeer e
Hurriyat ( the ambassador of liberation) by Khawaja Rafiq, there was little
known about the events which shaped Maqbool Bhat’s life, struggle and Political
thoughts. It appears from his letters written from various Pakistani and Indian
prisons and interviews with various journalists at different times that life
became a struggle from the age when children needed to be carefree and playing
with their peers and toys.
His politics came into
conflict with the state machinery of the Indian occupied Kashmir when he led
several agitations for the political rights of the people of Kashmir. Subsequently,
as it appears from his interviews and Rafiq’s narration confirmed by some his
colleagues, he went underground and then in 1958 crossed over to Pakistan along
with his uncle.
Maqbool Bhat got
admission in Peshawar University to do Urdu Literature and joined a local
newspaper ‘Anjaam’ to earn living. At Peshawar University, he met such people
as Ahmed Fraaz, one of the big legends of romantic and radical or commonly
called progressive Urdu poetry.
However, Maqbool Bhat
formed Jammu Kashmir National Liberation Front (JKNLF) on August 13, 1965.
Maqbool Bhat, Aurangzeb, Major Amaan Ulla and Kala Khan crossed the division
line to the Indian-held Kashmr in June 1966. The purpose was to explore the
feelings of Kashmiris there with the possibilities of forming some ‘cells’
there. It appears from the writings of such activists as F. Rehman who was
among those contacted during the three-month tour of NLF guerrillas in
different towns and cities that they managed to convince some people for
national liberation type of armed struggle as the only way to liberate
Kashmir.
Most of the Kashmiri
record on the history of NLF and Maqbool Bhat shows that on their way back,
they were intercepted by the Indian intelligence agencies and in a clash with
one of the security teams Aurangzeb, who was from Gilgit, and the CID inspector
Amar Chand was left dead. Maqbool Bhat and Kala Khan were arrested on September
14, September 1966.
Two First Information
Reports were registered against Maqbool Bhat. The first one lodged at Police
Station Sopore, Kashmir (F.I.R. 84/66) alleged that he crossed the ceasefire
line without a valid legal permit with an illegal purpose to overthrow the
lawfully established government of Jammu and Kashmir.
The second F.I.R. filed
at Police Station Panzala, Kashmir (F.I.R. 38/66) charged Maqbool Bhat
with the murder of Amar Chand. It alleged that Bhat and accomplices first took
cash; ornaments and other documents from C.I.D. Inspector Amar Chand’s house
then abducted and killed Amar. He was also charged with the enemy agent.
In his defence Maqbool
Bhat denied all charges except that he had without a valid legal permit crossed
the ceasefire line in June 1966. He said that he did not think it necessary to
obtain a permit for moving around in his own country.
The biased Indian court
found him guilty and passed death sentenced on him, while others were given the
life sentence. It is also reported that upon announcement of the death sentence
by Judge Neil Kant Ganjo Maqbool Bhat said, “The Rope has not yet been
made that can hang Maqbool Bhat...if Indian authorities of occupation think
that by hanging me, they can crush the Kashmir struggle. They are mistaken. The
struggle actually will start after my hanging.”
Nevertheless, Bhat’s execution
further contributed to the sense of alienation among most Kashmiris, and he
continues to be a major source of inspiration for the Kahmiri freedom fighters.
Bhat, like Afzal, was buried inside Tihar Jail. Kashmiri activists continue to
demand Maqbool Bhat’s remains, and in fact, a grave is kept vacant in
Srinagar’s martyrs’ graveyard for his mortal remains. He was the first
Kashmiri to be judicially murdered on Indian soil-making him the first
authentic martyr of the Kashmiri independence movement. His execution day is
celebrated as Martyr Day every year.
By sacrificing his life,
Maqbool Bhat played a key role in the struggle
of Kashmiris, which has continued unabated, despite Indian state terrorism. He
infused a new spirit into their movement. His martyrdom anniversary
provides an opportunity to ponder over the fact that various countries of the
world got independence by sacrificing their precious lives. On this vary day,
the best way to pay homage to the pioneer of Kashmir’s struggle, Maqbool Bhat is that all the Kashmiris must
renew their pledge to take the war of liberation to its logical end.
Email:
sajjad_logic@yahoo.com
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