Now or Never – Kashmiris’ Freedom Struggle

By Afshain Afzal

In the recent development, the Indian authorities have chalked out a new strategy to de-link freedom struggle of Kashmiris from Pakistan and Islam and shift the movement in Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir to mere Azadi. To achieve this objective Indian forces are relying on fake and self-engineered encounters against Kashmiris, in which beside killing innocent locals by dubbing them as terrorists the Indian security forces are also killed to project the operations as real. One wonders how long Kashmiris on the both side of Line of control (LoC) would bear Indian Security Forces’ atrocities. Although, the number of martyred Kashmiri this year, up to the second week of February 2017, has exceeded 31 and all of them were locals belonging to Kupwara, Baramulla, Srinagar and other areas of occupied Jammu and Kashmir but Indian authorities claims that they have only killed 15 Kashmiris in encounters / operations.

Indian authorities, instead of listening to the grievances of local Kashmiris and extending their rights, have further enhanced their coercive measures to silence the Kashmiri masses. On the condition of anonymity, as per the Police officer posted in Jammu and a DCIO, “the Indian agencies have prepared record of locals who either took part in freedom struggle in 1989 – 1990 or belong to such families who promote pro-Islam and pro-Pakistan views.  Such individuals are indulged in fake case to kill them one by one. Nevertheless, with the exception one or two odd Kashmiris none had past record of militancy.” In the latest incident, a joint operation was launched by troops of 1^st Rashtriya Rifles battalion and Indian Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), in which the house of Ashiq Ahmad Reshi son of Abdul Majid Reshi in Frisal area of Kulgam district was stormed with IEDs and explosives. The Army authorities claimed that they killed  Mudasir Ahmed Ahmed Tantray  resident of Redwani Kulgam; Wakil Ahmed Thokar resident of Harigam Kulgam; Farooq Ahmad resident of Chak Dasand and Younis Ahmad Lone resident of Hawara, Kulgam. To give the fake operation a real touch Lance Naik Bhandoria Gopal Singh and Sepoy Raghubir Singh were also shown as killed in a cross fire.

Interestingly, all the martyred had clean record before the martyrdom of freedom fighter Burhan Wani but after the brutal killing they decided to resist Indian occupying forces in held Jammu and Kashmir state. As a reaction of unlawful operations killing innocent Kashmiris, protests erupted to prevent Indian Security Forces from launching fake operations. During the protests to restrict Indian security Forces from carrying out fake operations, 129 young Kashmiris suffered bullet and pellet injuries. However, the Superintendent of Police Kulgam, Shridar Patil claimed that  about 20,000 people attacked the Indian forces from all the sides to allow militants to escape from the site of encounter.” Indian authorities are also carrying out propaganda that Pakistan is behind the unrest in occupied Jammu and Kashmir state but it has never been substantiated by incriminating evidences. So far Indian Police data reflects that only one militant killed in Sopore on 3 January 2017, namely Abu Umar Khitab, belonged to Pakistan but that too could not be confirmed. The unrecognizable body of Abu Umar Khitab can be son of any Kashmiris mother.

Reacting on fake encounter in Kulgam, top Kashmiri-Pakistani leader Syed Ali Geelani paid glorious tributes to martyred Kashmiris of Redwani Kulgam said that the forced occupation is the root cause of all bloodshed in the state. He said, “These youths are sacrificing their precious lives for a sacred cause. It is a cherished and patriotic mission and we are duty bound to carry their mission to its logical end.” Meanwhile, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq expressed deep sorrow over the killings in Kulgam operation saying a severe oppression and refusal to acknowledge and engage with the basic political right and aspiration of the people is pushing our young towards armed resistance. Today, the state of affairs in occupied Jammu and Kashmir has reached to a stage where locals have come to an open revolt against the Indian security forces by raising up at the sight of Indian troops entering their villages, forcing the troops to flee. One wonders how long the UNO as a world organization and civilized nations would ignore Indian security forces to genocide of Kashmiris.