Once again terrorists have killed an innocent Kashmiri. The lamp of a family has been extinguished. The innocent kids have been orphaned. Tears, depression and dejection have found their places in the heart and mind of the widow and children of Pooran Krishan Bhat.
What was the fault of this poor Kashmiri Pandit? His only fault was that he had dared to stay in Kashmir – the land of his forefathers. Living a happy life from past three decades in a small village named Chodrigund village of Shopian district, he had never thought that he will become prey to the terrorists.
As per the reports, the deceased left behind two children – a girl whose age is 13 years and a boy aged 11. I wonder what kind of devastating picture may have got fixed in the minds of the children who have witnessed the killing of their father. Not only these two innocent kids but the whole village may not be able to erase the sight of blood.
The Cycle Of Tragedy
Blood has the same colour for all. One cannot ascertain the religion and caste in blood. Sometimes the blood saves lives and sometimes it haunts. And in this case this blood will haunt the residents of the village.
But who cares? It is the same old saying – wadvada, kathkatha, chatkatha and khehbatta. Meaning after the death of any person, it is said that for day one everyone cries, on day two everyone talks about the deceased, on day three everyone tries to change the topic and on the fourth day everyone looks for good meals and everything gets over. The deceased is forgotten.
After some time some other person gets killed and those who are actually broadcasting the show keep it going. Though for some days whispers and gossip goes on between the people. Some people blame Indian agencies, some blame ruling parties and some silently point towards the terrorists.
However, nobody dares to call spade a spade due to the fear. This is Kashmir, and this Kashmiri everyday shoulders someone’s coffin, buries or cremates somebody’s son, father, brother or husband silently. The religious clerics, the civil society groups pay tributes to the deceased and console the bereaved families but at the end, it is the blood of the common Kashmiri which is spilled on the roads.
Time To Hold The Hand Which Guards Us
As per the Holy Quran, “Killing any innocent person is the same as killing the whole humanity”. But we Kashmiris have never understood this. We have many faces, we keep on changing our faces day in and day out. We are jack of all trades and master of none. We want to keep everyone happy both state and non-state actors. We are being crushed and our homes are emptied. We have lost and we are losing our dear ones, the ones whom we call our brothers who are either a Muslim brother or a Hindu brother. It is high time to stay focused and hold the hand which will guard us, hold us and assure us of being alive.
Our Politicians Legitimize The Killings By Terrorists
To preserve the vote bank, politicians use this blood. When an innocent is killed, it becomes a political talk point. It is not regarded by the politicians as a serious issue. They talk not to offer condolences or for sympathies to bereaved families but just to grab the attention of the common masses that they only are right and other political parties are wrong. Political elites from their mansions issue statements of blame only and did not try to find the way out.
National Conference President Dr Farooq Abdullah on October 17 said “Killings in Kashmir won’t stop until justice is done.” By issuing such statements the NC president is fuelling the killing spree in Kashmir. It is miserable that at time of condemnation the so-called nationalists are trying to legitimize the killings.
Our politicians have used the abrogation of special status as a political tool to stay relevant. A common Kashmiri hardly bothers whether Kashmir has special status or not
If the NC president is really pained by the innocent killings he should have called the all-party meeting to look for the solutions, not issue statements that may prove dangerous in the future.
With these statements the killers get emboldened to continue the killings. Being a senior politician, issuing such irresponsible statements towards this serious issue is a matter of great concern. Such statements nourish the young and radicalized youth of Kashmir to choose the wrong path. They find that the path they have chosen has valid reasons.
Common Kashmiri Not Bothered About Special Status
When in power, the same politicians are hard core nationalists. Kashmir is witnessing killings from three decades. It is not a phenomenon of today only. The mass killings had happened in their regimes also but that time these politicians would justify killings and when not in power they choose soft separatism. Hundreds of youths were injured with pellet guns in their time, hundreds were killed in protests and hundreds have been crippled for life – what about that injustice?
I am not saying that recent killing was legal. I am trying to say that using such words only give courage to the beasts who take these ill steps to destroy Kashmir. It is the responsibility of these politicians to convene and look for solutions not to entangle the problem more.
Our politicians have used abrogation of special status as a political tool to stay relevant. A common Kashmiri hardly bothers whether Kashmir has special status or not. Common Kashmiris work in their fields or other workplaces throughout the day, and in the evening they come across these statements of Article 370 and others. I have always observed that these so-called leaders, whether political or separatist, have made our Kashmir hell. None of the leaders till date have talked for the better life of people.
