Sopore « An observer's foresight

WILL KASHMIR EVER SEE LIGHT?

Considered a land of paradise, Kashmir has always attracted tourists and ironically violence as well. Violence, strikes, militant attacks now rule the land instead of mystic beauty of Dal Lake and gardens. It will be hard for the Kashmir folks to remember the last day when peace dominated their lives.

The latest strike to disrupt the normal lives in Kashmir Valley was called by Hardline faction of Hurriyat General Secretary Masrat Alam Bhat to protest the killing of a teenager in a teargas shelling at Rajouri Kadal area of the city. He asked the people to observe two days strike on June 29 and 30. The whole economy was paralysed with the government offices, educational institutions, banks and other private and government establishments closed down and traffic off the road. Shops and business markets were also shut down. Following the strike most of the le aders and activists of Hurriyat including its chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani, have been arrested and slapped Public Safety Act, the moderate faction of Hurriyat leaders have been placed under house arrest since Monday. Several top separatist leaders, including JKLF (Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front) chairman Mohammad Yaseen Malik, National Front chairman Nayeem Ahmad Khan and Muslim Khawateen Markaz Chief Yasmeen Raja were also arrested.

From this time onwards Kashmir witnessed demonstrations, undeclared curfews, restrictions and complete strikes, thus throwing the normal lives out of gear. The Valley was in throes of bloody public unrest. Within August itself, 57 lives were taken by the security force action as riotous, stone-pelting mobs engaged security personnel and attacked paramilitary camps and police stations at different places. Anti-India and pro-freedom slogans by the young protestors and stone- pelting were a common sight. In fact stone pelting was considered an instrument of organized and orchestrated protest. Kupwara and Handwara in the north, Kakpora and Pulwama in south and Gandherbal in the east, Sopore, Srinagar and Anantnag were the main places where residents urged by the protestors marched in the streets. So if on one hand there was strike declared by Separatists, then on the other authorities imposed curfew in Sopore and placed prohibitory orders in various parts of Srinagar and rest of the Valley in the name of law and order.

It is quite evident that normal life has become a rare sight in Kashmir. Even if life returned to normal on July 17, 2010 after 21 days, it was short-lived as protestors again clashed with the police. On August 16 the hardline faction of the separatist Hurriyat group headed by Syed Ali Geelani called for a Valley-wide shutdown on Monday as part of its Quit Kashmir campaign. In connection to that Geelani announced a new protest calendar on October 25 2010. He asked the people to observe civil curfew on November 5, November 6, November 7 and November 8. According to the calendar people will observe complete shutdown and Black Day on October 27 against the landing of Indian troops in Jammu and Kashmir and march towards the UN Observers’ Office. It was only on October 28 and October 29 when people resumed their normal activities.

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Four months have passed and Kashmir is still in the same condition- curfews imposed on every other day, calls for strikes and police firing. Even if strikes are withdrawn and curfews are lifted, some incident or the other throws the Valley back to that same bloody public unrest. But it has also resulted in unusual peace. Sunday becomes a very busy working day for students, bank and telephone officials and markets as they do not wish to any more time. There is so much desperation in a common man in Valley to go back to his normal life. The question lingers in his mind- “Will Kashmir ever see light of day?”

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/strike-disrupts-normal-life-in-major-towns-of-kashmir/706572/

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/curfew-in-some-parts-of-north-kashmir/705550/

http://www.dailyindia.com/show/406538.php