Kashmir's Mass Uprising

Syed Ali Safvi

Kashmir is burning. Jammu is not calm either. Both the regions, sadly, are up against each other over 40 hectares of forestland. So far more than 30 protestors have lost their lives in police firing in both the regions. The state is well and truly divided along regional lines, or, as some would prefer to say, along religious lines.

It all started when Jammu and Kashmir government decided to transfer 40 hectares of forestland in Kashmir to a Hindu Shrine Board, Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB). The decision triggered unprecedented protests in the valley where the order was seen as a conspiracy "to change the demographics of the valley". The state of Jammu and Kashmir enjoys a special status within the Indian constitution. According to Article 370 non-state subjects cannot purchase land in Kashmir.The land transfer issue united the sequestered Hurriyat Conference (HC). The protests snowballed into public uprising, and with mounting public pressure People's Democratic Party (PDP), a strong ally of the ruling coalition government in the state, pulled the plug on the government. PDP's withdrawal triggered a major political crisis in the state and paved the way for yet another spell of Governor's rule in the State - for the fifth time since 1977. The governor, N.N. Vohra - who also heads the SASB - rescinded the order.

While the protests in Muslim-majority Kashmir died out with the revocation of the order, the Hindu-majority region of Jammu erupted against the decision and accused the governor of "succumbing to the pressure of separatists and hardliners".While the Jammu was burning, the valley was relatively calm until Hindu fanatics in Jammu imposed economic blockade on the valley. Muslim truckers were beaten to pulp and vehicles were burnt by a band of Hindu vagabonds. Brandishing swords, tridents, petrol bombs and country-made pistols, they attacked Muslims and Mosques, and killed, looted, ransacked at will.

In the wake of economic blockade, Kashmir was reeling under an acute scarcity of essential commodities and, most importantly, life-saving drugs. Hundreds of fruit-laden trucks were stranded on the Jammu-Srinagar highway and at Srinagar's fruit mandi. Owing to the blockade of the highway by the sword-wielding mob of Hindu fanatics, these trucks were unable to reach their respective destinations. The Kashmir Fruit Growers Association (KFGA), in order to sell their harvest, decided to march towards Muzaffarabad. Hurriyat Conference issued "Muzaffarad chalo" call. A sea of around 1.50 lakh Kashmiris marched towards Muzaffarad on August 11 and bullets were showered on the caravan when it reached Uri (some 100 kilometres from Srinagar). The executive member of Hurriyat Conference (Mirwaiz), Sheikh Abdul Aziz, who was leading the protest along with Shabir Ahmad Shah, was killed along with eight others in an unprovoked firing by troops.

Interestingly, during his visit to Kashmir in April this year, Indian Minister of State for Commerce Jairam Ramesh said that the trade on Srinagar-Muzaffarabad route could begin within three months. "The slow movement forward in this regard was due to the political instability in Pakistan, which now is over with the installation of a democratically set up government there," Ramesh opined. But when fruitgrowers, facing Hobson's choice, tried to take their fruit, rotting by the roadside, owing to the attacks and blockade, to Muzaffarabad they were showered with bullets.

The killing of Aziz spread like a wild fire across the valley and people took to streets to give vent to their pent up anger. Chairman of his faction of Hurriyat Conference, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has accused the troops of "target killings". Night protests are back in Kashmir, particularly in the Srinagar city. The protests are reminiscent of the protests witnessed in early-90s when people would throng the streets and the Valley reverberated with anti-India, pro-freedom and pro-Pakistan slogans. The land issue has united the Kashmiris, irrespective of the political divide.Hundreds of thousands of Kashmiris took to streets on August 16 to mourn the death of Sheikh Aziz. The protestors, carrying green colour flags emblazoned with "Allah-o-Akbar" (God is Great), travelled to Pampore, the hometown of the slain leader Sheikh Abdul Aziz. A long cavalcade of buses, two wheelers, trucks, private cars, load carriers, auto rickshaws carrying mourners drove towards Pampore. It seemed as if all roads were leading to the Saffron town. A congregation of over one lakh assembled in the Eidgah of Pampore where the Hurriyat leaders, including Mirwaiz Umer and Syed Ali Geelani, addressed the massive gathering. Mirwaiz asked New Delhi to withdraw armed forces from J&K, revoke Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), release all political detenues from the State and throw Srinagar-Muzaffarabad Road open for "free trade and travel". While Syed Ali Geelani said that the Kashmiris had launched a movement of 'Azadi Bara-e-Islam' (freedom for Islam) "which would be carried to its logical conclusion." He also asked the pro-India politicians to immediately resign or else face 'social boycott'.

Following Geelani's announcement, Mohammad Yaqoob Vakil, an old time colleague of Mirwaiz Umer Farooq who had earlier this year migrated to pro-India People's Democratic Party (PDP) returned back to Hurriyat on the same evening. The mood in Kashmir is upbeat. It seems this time Kashmiris will not settle for anything less than freedom. Pro-India parties and leaders are facing the wrath of irate protestors. In an unprecented move, Pakistani flag was hoisted atop the house of former forest minister and senior PDP leader, Qazi Muhammad Afzal at Ganderbal (some 30 km north of Srinagar) on the occasion of Pakistan's Independence Day.Despite several rounds of All Party Meetings in Delhi and Jammu, the government has miserably failed to break the ice. Interestingly, when an all-party delegation visited the state to hold parleys aimed at solving the Amarnath land row, the delegation did not deem it necessary to hold talks with any of the separatist leaders or, more importantly, the fruit growers. Today the mood in Kashmir is different. Kashmiris, irrespective of age and ideology, want freedom. The valley is abuzz with pro-freedom slogans. Thanks to the land row, secessionist groups in the valley have regained their lost political ground. The Kashmiri youth are seen rallying around the seperatists, an ominous sign for New Delhi.

"National Conference and PDP may command the loyalty of the old and middle-aged, the youth-Kashmir's future-are with (Yaseen) Malik and those like him who speak the language of self-determination and empowerment," feels Prem Shankar Jha, India's leading strategic analyst.

The issue can destabilise the Indo-Pak peace process and with mounting international pressure on India over the killing of peaceful protestors, it has a potential to sabotage the Indo-US nuclear deal.The Pakistani government condemned "the excessive and unwarranted use of force against the people of Indian-occupied Kashmir". India retorted back, saying "These statements constitute clear interference in the internal affairs of an integral part of India - such statements by leaders of a foreign country do not help the situation. Nor do they contribute to creating the atmosphere necessary for the dialogue process between India and Pakistan to move forward."

Amnesty International has asked the Indian government to "ensure that it protects the right to life in accordance with its responsibilities under international law".

However, the fight is no longer over the land row, but for the "final settlement of Kashmir issue".

"Now, people want freedom from Indian occupation. The land issue is a thing of the past. Neither is there any need to talk about this issue nor would I ever talk on the subject to the (Shri Amarnath Yatra Sangarsh) Samiti," Geelani said.

Presently there does not seem any solution in sight. The issue has slipped out of the hands of Indian government and the J&K Governor. It seems very unlikely that they would be able to put any brakes on the incessant protests. New Delhi didn't react fast enough when the land issue first came to fore. In fact, it allowed the situation to take alarming proportions. Had the honchos in New Delhi acted proactively, the situation could have been quite different today.