Dated : 01-07-2010

Issue  : July 2010

Kashmir on Boil  (Time to Heed Sane Voices)
Kashmir is once again on boil as the cycle of killings of innocent civilians by security forces has once again escalated. As it is known that on Friday, 12 June, 2010, Tufail Matoo, a 17-year old High Secondary student was killed during by the police when they were chasing a small group of protestors near Ghani Stadium in old city. The circumstantial evidence and autopsy report suggests that Tufail was directly hit on head by teargas shell by the police personnel, and thus yet another target killing of a Kashmiri youth by the state forces. After Tufail’s killings a number of teenagers lost their lives in police action on protestors. The situation is quiet explosive and has multidimensional grave facets related to it. In a latest development it is learnt that the central Home Ministry has written to the President of India that Afzal Guru's is a fit case for death sentence, in response to the mercy plea filed by his wife Tabassum. The Centre said the nature of the crime is heinous and the convict in the Parliament House attack deserves no mercy. Two more teenaged Kashmiris were killed and 16 others injured four of them critically, in Sopore on Friday as the CRPF opened indiscriminate fire on a mob reportedly setting their vehicle ablaze during violent protests against the death of two local militants in an overnight encounter. Under the impact of Sopore killings the Kashmir Valley is reeling under continuous curfew like situation. Hundreds of youth have been booked for their role in stone pelting.
This is just one side of worrisome situation. As the firebrand separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani and several other leaders have been detained under infamous Public Safety Act (PSA).
Pertinently, He has recently called for shortening the annual Amarnath Pilgrimage on account of environmental concerns. Duration of pilgrimage should be restricted to 15 days from two months. Increased duration of the yatra is causing serious damage to the fragile environment of the area. We are not against any religion or the yatra, but destroying environment and culture in Kashmir serves the interests of India,” Geelani said.
While immediately commenting on the development Amarnath Yatra Sangarash Samiti has threatened repeat of 2008 economic blockade of Kashmir and asked the chairman of Hurriyat Conference (G) Syed Ali Geelani to stop interfering into the religious issues of Hindus.
Leela Karan Sharma, the former convenor of the Samiti, an organisation that enforced economic blockade of Kashmir following the agitation against transfer of State’s forest land to the Amarnath shrine board in 2008, recently said: “Geelani is nobody to suggest government about the duration of Amarnath yatra. The time, place and duration of yatra are given only by Shri Amarnath shrine board and the representatives of Hindu religious organizations.”

The only way out of the current mess and gloom seems to be a peaceful, negotiated settlement of the Kashmir dispute in accordance with UN resolutions or any other logical mechanism that takes into consideration the aspirations of masses. But for the moment killings and suppression of masses in Kashmir is threatening the entire region and the future impacts of this suppression can be catastrophic for the whole region.