Kashmir is on the edge again. Almost 32 people have been killed in the fresh cycle of violence since July 9. Over 1,500 people have been injured – some of them battling severe injuries in hospitals. The main Srinagar hospital, Sri Mahraja Hari Singh Hospital, has declared a medical emergency as the number of injured is rising. Kashmir has been under curfew for four days and people are virtually locked in homes, but the defiance of restrictions is defining the new mode of resistance.
This time the unrest is not due to the death of a civilian but that of most-wanted commander of Hizbul Mujahideen. The killing of Kashmir militancy’s poster boy Burhan Wani has left a trail of death and destruction, perhaps not anticipated by Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) coalition government headed by Mehbooba Mufti, once known for her soft separatism. The situation in Indian Kashmir is grim and the death of 32 people 30 of whom were killed by the police and paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has numbed the place. The fear of some analysts, including former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, that a dead Wani may prove to be more dangerous than a living one have started coming true.
Pakistan has strongly condemned the brutal use of force by Indian security personnel against peaceful and unarmed protesters, which resulted in the killing of two young Kashmiri men.
I condemn the Indian Government & Forces’ brutality. I am deeply concerned at the increase in systematic human rights violations in the Indian Occupied Kashmir. I would like to extend our heartfelt sympathies and condolences to the families of the victims. It’s time for all human rights organisations and UN to play their role & not just act like puppets.
Naima Sadaqat
Rawalpindi
