Urging India and Pakistan to de-escalate tension and notresort to war and violence, the chairman of Hurriyat Conference (M) MirwaizUmar Farooq Wednesday alleged that the present dispensation at New Delhi wasusing Kashmir as a “whipping boy” for electoral gains as general elections inthe country are round the corner.
The Hurriyat (M) chief had convened a press conference athis Nigeen residence here but the police barred journalists from entering thepremises. Later, Mirwaiz issued a statement.
“Firstly, the leadership and people of Kashmir greatly urgeIndia and Pakistan not to escalate the situation and desist from warmongeringwhich will be a disaster for the entire region,” Mirwaiz said, adding that theyurge both the governments that, as has been seen in the past, escalation andwar can never resolve the issues.
“Only talking to each other is the way forward. Hurriyatreiterates the call for dialogue,” he said.
There is a threatening and grave atmosphere created by “theauthoritarian state across Kashmir and people are being psychologicallyintimidated”, Mirwaiz said.
“Journalists and media are being targeted and two newspapersare facing reprisals,” he said.
“Keeping in view this wave of repression and intimidation,coercive raids were conducted at the residences of resistance leadershipincluding Muhammad Yasin Malik, Shabir Ahmad Shah, Muhammad Ashraf Sehrai,Naseem Geelani and others by the NIA on Tuesday. The NIA team also raided myhouse from 8am to 6pm. A cordon was laid around my house by a large number ofparamilitary forces”.
Mirwaiz said around 15 to 20 people from the NIA,accompanied by two local policemen, entered his house and office and thoroughlysearched it.
“The houses of my relatives who live around me were alsosearched. After these thorough coercive searches, certain items wereconfiscated by the NIA team, including my laptop and phones, hard drives frommy office computers, press releases of Hurriyat and Anjuman Auqaf Jamia Masjidletterheads and records of Kashmiri students studying in Pakistan medicalcolleges recommended by Hurriyat,” he said.
Mirwaiz said he was not given a copy of magisterial orderfor the searches.
“When the NIA team left, I was not given the seizure memo ofthings seized from me which is ideally a norm. When I asked for it, I was toldto approach the court,” he said. “Later, the NIA in its press release issued inthe evening used word ‘incriminating evidence’ which is a matter of concern.There was nothing so-called incriminating that was seized. Since I was notgiven the seizure memo, any mischief can be done”.
Mirwaiz also said that it was also said that “a high-techinternet communication was also recovered”.
“This actually is a simple internet lease line by a privatecompany which is commonly used in media offices and at homes for good anduninterrupted internet use. The word ‘recovered’ is part of a propaganda togive an impression as if it was something hidden that has been discovered,” hesaid.
“We will approach international organisations as theseintimidating and threatening tactics are being adopted against the leadershipand activists by the authorities, which are completely undemocratic andtotalitarian.”
Mirwaiz said: “Ours is a peaceful political movement butthere is a deliberate design to link it with violence and through that route,harass, intimidate and malign us”.
“Simultaneously”, Mirwaiz said, “a viscous and steadycampaign to demonise Kashmiris and generate hate against us is promoted,especially through electronic media to justify repression against the peopleand action against us and to project the people’s just struggle forself-determination as an enterprise”.
“The great sacrifices and struggle of the people offered forthe resolution of the Kashmir dispute are undermined. Propaganda has taken overreality and people of India are being deliberately misled and fed lies,” hesaid. “It is not difficult to understand that at the time of elections in India,when other things have failed for the rulers, Kashmir is being used like awhipping boy and people of Kashmir are being targeted, threatened andintimidated to polarise Indian voters and garner votes”.
Mirwaiz said the threats of removing Articles 370 and 35A—which grant special status to Jammu and Kashmir—are kept “hanging over ourheads like a Damocles sword to be used as and when the electoral situation forthem demands”.
“Let the rulers know that people of Kashmir will defend thisArticle at all costs. Whether leadership is in jails or out of it, if anytinkering is done with it, people will be on streets. No one in J&K isgoing to take this assault on our identity and disputed status lying low(sic),” Mirwaiz said.
He said the Hurriyat believes in dialogue to resolve the”issue.”
“We have walked the talk when it came to engagement and didso in the past even at huge risks and sacrifice. We do not want war andviolence,” he said. “We want our youth to live and prosper and not be forced toa violent path. But that cannot happen through repression and coercion. Thatcan only happen when the sentiment and aspirations of Kashmiris are addressedin its human and historical context”.