Killing resistance

As the resistance against the repeal of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act is gaining momentum – despite the lockdown of the valley for well over 150 days – the Indian government has started pursuing a strategy to raise an alternate pro-Indian leadership in IOK to give an impression to the outside world that the Indian action enjoyed the support of the majority of the Kashmiri population.

Reportedly Indian intelligence agencies are entrusted with the responsibility to trap the second-tier Kashmiri leadership using detentions and offers of benefits to win their support. In pursuance of this strategy a few unknown persons in a press conference on August 5 announced the formation of a new political party called the Jammu and Kashmir Political Movement, headed by a person who claimed to be a former member of National Conference. However the move does not seem to have worked the way it was anticipated to unfold.

The Indian government is also understood to have unleashed efforts to put pressure on members of the PDP and National Conference to abandon their parties and form a new pro-Indian political outfit. Indian intelligence keeps visiting sub-jails where leaders of PDP, NC and Congress are held and are making offers of freedom provided they agree to form a new pro-Indian political party. Some former MLAs have already been released as a result of a deal.

Parallel to unfurling the foregoing devious strategy, the Indian government is also engaged in involving Kashmiri leaders – who are leading the resistance movement – in decades-old cases to break their will. A number of them have been summoned to the court for allegedly planning protests in Srinagar in 1998. Syed Ali Gilani has been framed in a terror funding case .Similarly, JKLF leader Yasin Malik has been indicted in a 29-year-old murder case.

In the backdrop of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act coming into force on October 31, the process to change the demographic realities of IOK has been unleashed in a systematic way. The Act allows non-resident Indian citizens to buy property in the valley. To achieve this objective a new department for the registration of immovable property is being established in Indian-occupied Kashmir. The new registration act also changes the authority responsible for registration of land transactions from judiciary to the revenue department. In line with BJP policy, a campaign of giving Hindu names to boulevards, government departments and other landmarks has been set rolling. A move to replace Urdu with Hindi as official language is already in the offing. The exercise is a deliberate attempt to rebrand state assets and official documents.

But the foregoing moves by Indian government have not been able to break the will of the people of Kashmir, despite the continuation of the killing spree and extensive lockdown, continue to fight for their freedom. The situation continues to remain precarious. Access to mosques and shrines remains restricted and business activity is at a standstill, which has caused economic loss to the tune of billons of rupees. Despite some ease in restrictions, life has not returned to normalcy as claimed by the Indian government. Markets open only for two to three hours in protest against the harsh security measures. The draconian measures by India have also led to increased attacks by Kashmiri freedom fighters. To counter this development, an extensive search and cordon operation has been launched by the Indian security forces during which the people are subjected to torture and humiliation. The Indian government has also raised a special operations division in IOK for anti-insurgency operations. To keep the situation in Kashmir under wraps media, human rights groups and foreign diplomats are denied free movement.

However, the strategy to keep IOK shut from the outside world has not been successful. Since the beginning of the lockdown, international media and international rights organizations have been regularly reporting about the humanitarian crisis in the valley. But it is regrettable to note that the bulk of the international community, particularly the US and its allies, has shown criminal indifference to the plight of the Kashmiris. Their only response has been sporadic and stifled expressions of concern.

This has not only encouraged India to continue with its oppression in Kashmir but also to adopt a hostile disposition towards Pakistan which is amply demonstrated by the continued violation of the ceasefire agreement along the LoC. India, in pursuance of the Hindutva philosophy, has become a war-like state – posing a grave threat to peace and security in the region. Prime Minister Imran Khan in his address to the UN General Assembly had warned the world community in this regard and rightly sought their intervention before it was too late. He has continued to do so from all available international forums thereafter.

The fears expressed by Pakistan regarding India resorting to a false flag operation against Pakistan, in the backdrop of a worsening situation in Kashmir and the severity of protests in mainland India against the Citizenship Amendment Bill, cannot be dismissed lightly. India’s track record corroborates these apprehensions. That indeed points towards a dangerous situation. The two nuclear states standing face to face with each other presents a dreadful spectacle as any miscalculation on either side can lead to disastrous consequence for the region and beyond.

The world community must wake up to the dangers lurking on the horizon. The UN, which is responsible for maintaining world peace, also needs to come out of slumber and play a role in not only defusing the situation but also working for removing the root cause of conflict in the region in light of its own resolutions. That is the only way peace can be ensured in the region. The people of Indian-occupied Kashmir and Pakistan are not going to let India get away with what it has done in IOK. Kashmiris are determined to win their freedom and Pakistan stands justifiably behind them for their right of self-determination.

The writer is a freelance contributor. Email: ashpak10@gmail.com