Fresh Kashmir curbs

Indian security forces have again turned the territory of Kashmir into a raging tinderbox. A day after gunning down Hizbul Mujahideen commander Sabzar Ahmad Bhat –  the successor of the iconic figure of Burhan Wani – and his 16-year-old associate in rather murky circumstances, the Indian authorities clamped a curfew across most of the territory and suspended mobile and telephone services in a bid to quell widespread protests over Bhat’s slaying. Eyewitnesses have contested the official police version according to which Bhat and his young colleague were killed in a gunfight. They insist that Bhat was a victim of an extrajudicial killing after having been arrested earlier by the security forces. It caused a public furore and ignited impromptu street protests in virtually all areas of the disputed region. Tens of hundreds of students joined the protests. And what they spoke at these demonstrations should send a chill down the collective spine of Indian officials.

The curfew and other measures cast a pall of despair over Srinagar and other towns as it paralysed life on the first day of Ramazan. Many of these security curbs were imposed with one express purpose: to prevent Kashmiris from attending the HuM commander’s funeral. Yet the mourners slipped past the barricades to reach the burial site. One protester was gunned down by Indian forces during clashes as hundreds of villagers tried to break the security cordon. The villagers even hurled rocks at security forces in scenes reminiscent of the Palestinian intifada.

There were other irritants too. The central mosque in Srinagar was shut down and worshippers were barred from offering prayers there. Though these and other restrictions have been introduced on the pretext of maintaining law and order, Kashmiris are unlikely to accept the measures without a fight.

The new measures were introduced some hours after the authorities ended a month-long ban on 22 social media sites.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 29^th, 2017.

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