I am a Kashmiri Muslim who has been living and working in the US for the last 13 years. I live with my wife and a daughter and the rest of my family lives in our wonderful but troubled motherland; that once was termed as the paradise on earth. Not a single day goes by when I don’t miss our motherland. I also make it a point to visit for 4 to 5 weeks every alternate year. For the last three years I have been fortunate to be able to visit every year.

Call it a coincidence or my misfortune that for the past three years my timing has been such that when I have visited, Kashmir has been consistently shutdown for one reason or the other. It was the “Ragda” in 2008; Shopian in 2009 and the “Sangbaaz Tehreek” in 2010.  Generally the months from mid June to mid August are the summer break months in the West and most of the expats like me tend to visit during that period.

Now if we think about as to who benefits from the incessant hartals; I would take the liberty of saying that it benefits the elements that at their core don’t want to see the issue resolved. Since among other things the timing is very sensitive. I am not questioning the intentions of those who float these hartal time-tables but I am questioning the methodology and final beneficiary. 

Incidentally when I read about one such time table on a local news paper, there was mention of the word “relaxation” on one of the days of the week, it sounded more like an order than a collective program by the people.

Why is it that the months of June, July and August tend to be the “hartal” months of choice?  Is it because it is the middle of school year for our kids, or is it because it is that time of the year when potentially some work could have been done towards development from the local government; or is it because it would have benefitted the tourist industry so that we could pave way for arguments for economic viability of Kashmir (but that would put money in the pockets of the common man); or is it indeed to benefit the yatra since it helps smooth sailing of the Yatra. They  don’t see the traffic they don’t see overbooked hotels that they would have to pay premium for.  Also it ensures that most of the major policy decisions get made in Jammu during the mindless “Darbar Move”. I could go on and on, but the point being that these incessant hartals are fundamentally anti-Kashmiri. The timing of these events might accidentally seem to coincide with certain events but curious if it is on purpose…

I am not remotely suggesting that the struggle that has been going on in Kashmir should alter its course.  It is genuine and Kashmir needs a solution, but I do question the methodology. Denying students the opportunity to go to schools, colleges and universities is no less than a criminal act. Our youth is being denied the opportunity to shape their future and thus the future of our motherland. These so called “hartals” have not only crippled our society economically but also mentally. It is sad that the first jubilant moment for a 6 year old in the morning is news of a hartal. As a society it has introduced inertia, clogged our minds. There has to be a dialogue at a societal level, broader involvement from the intellectual class to decide as to how we can progress as a society and yet keep the core issue of Kashmir alive in the world. There is no easy answer, but I am sure crippling the society, shutting down institutions, shutting down people’s minds is not the answer.

(Feedback at naim@cisco.com)

Lastupdate on : Wed, 11 Aug 2010 21:30:00 Mecca time
Lastupdate on : Wed, 11 Aug 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Thu, 12 Aug 2010 00:00:00 IST