Youm-e-Istehsal: Delhi's fury in IIOJK rages on

Rights activists and Kashmiris will mark ‘Youm-e-Istehsal-Kashmir’ on Saturday (today) to reiterate condemnation of the August 5, 2019 move, which led to the disputed valley's annexation with Indian union territory, plunging the restive area into a dangerous new phase.

The Indian government, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, repealed Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir’s (IIOJK) autonomous status and divided it into two territories to bring it under New Delhi’s direct rule. The drastic move was accompanied by mass arrests and a lengthy suspension of mobile and internet services.

The move raised concerns and sparked comparisons to Israel's "settler colonialism" in Palestine after allegations of attempts to engineer a demographic change in the Muslim-majority region surfaced.

The BJP-led government's shocking roughshod action was followed by a crackdown on political activity, arrests of hundreds of political leaders and a series of administrative measures allowing more outsiders to settle in Kashmir and raising concerns over attempts at engineering a demographic change in the Muslim-majority region.

Besides imposing a curfew and deployment of 350,000 additional forces, all mainstream and pro-movement leadership along with active youth was arrested to suppress any reaction by the local masses.

Read Accession Day: Kashmiris call for end to India’s brutalities in IIOJK

Since then, India has unleashed several actions to strengthen its grip over the occupied valley, including political engineering, demographic marginalisation, socio-economic machinations, cultural invasion, media curbs and legal strangulation.

Post-pellet guns: Draconian laws

Meanwhile, the Indian state has been utilising an even more powerful tool against the people of Kashmir that surpasses the damage caused by its notorious use of pellet guns: the Public Safety Act (PSA). The draconian law, along with the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), essentially ensures that Kashmiris rarely find themselves on the side of justice.

In order to suppress the outbreak of unrest, the government took harsh measures against those it deemed "trouble makers," resulting in the booking of hundreds of individuals, particularly young people, under the oppressive Public Safety Act.

To further intensify the harassment of the masses, the State Investigation Agency (SIA) was established, following the model of the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

The SIA was formed as a specialised, nodal agency for “coordinating with NIA and other central agencies” to take measures as required for “speedy and effective investigation and prosecution of terrorism-related cases”. The agency was set up aside from the CID and other allied agencies working in the UT.

The Home Department notes various offences under different acts and provisions that direct the purview of the SIA. These include The Explosive Substances Act, 1908 (6 of 1908); The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (37 of 1967). 0ffences having terrorism linkage; all terrorist acts including terrorist financing and circulation of high quality fake Indian currency notes cases; terrorism-related larger conspiracy cases; terrorist financing and terrorism-linked NDPS cases.

Other offences include terrorism-linked kidnapping and murder cases; terrorism-linked weapon snatching/robbery cases and cases relating to terrorism-linked propaganda, false narrative, large-scale incitement, spreading disaffection, and enmity against the Indian union.

This provides the SIA with a very wide canvas to investigate the so-called offences in IIOJK.

Political and economic exploitation

The political situation in the occupied valley has also taken a turn for the worse following Delhi’s revocation of its autonomous status. Recent developments indicate a deliberate attempt to manipulate the political landscape and exploit the region's resources.

Rights activists have alleged the recent delimitation process has been carried out with the nefarious aim of increasing Hindu seats and dividing the Muslim vote bank. This move has been met with opposition from regional mainstream leaders who have rejected the delimitation outright.

The electoral roll has been published and voters increased. Reportedly, over 60% of the total increase is from outsiders, while seven new parties have been raised since August 5, 2019, to weaken and create division amongst valley-based mainstream parties and Muslim majority Chenab Valley, Jammu areas.

Read more India boosts security for G20 meeting in IIOJK after attacks

In addition to political manoeuvres, economic exploitation also remains a pressing concern. Local businesses are facing annihilation from mainland conglomerates, resulting in significant losses, with the local economy suffering losses of Rs 3.67 million per day during the two-year lockdown period since 2019.

The unemployment rate among Kashmiri youth has reached 0.5 million. To further limit the economic independence of Kashmiris, India is imposing hurdles on rice cultivation, particularly in the valley.

Furthermore, land laws have been enacted to allow outsiders to purchase property in the region.
Since the annexation, over 4,500 applications for land acquisition have been submitted. To further exacerbate the situation, the Indian army has been granted powers to seize land by declaring it a "strategic area”.

This has raised concerns about demographic change, as over 2.5 million outsiders who are gaining the right to vote will also be granted domicile, potentially altering the demographic makeup of the region.

Alarming actions have been taken against government employees and families as well. Around 1,000 employees with alleged links to the Hurriyat have been shortlisted for termination, with more than 1,026 already being dismissed from their positions. Additionally, over 60,000 families have been shortlisted for the denial of passports and job opportunities, effectively denying them basic human rights.