14th February 2019- Adil Ahmad Dar, a suicide bomber, caused a massive blast in Pulwama killing more than 40 Indian soldiers. The attack wasn’t a shocker, per se, because Kashmiris have been facing it for decades, many local groups of protestors have attacked the Indian soldiers present at the border. Eventually, this reinstated the blame-game between India and Pakistan regarding instigation of conspiracies over the disputed territories adding fuel to the cold war that’s been on since 1989.
What made these young men in Kashmir resort to violence?
Kashmir, a land known for its immense beauty and culture has proven to become a battlefield for two neighboring, nuclear-armed nations. Among the three wars fought between India and Pakistan, two centered around the conflict regarding Kashmir, which has remained unresolved since the post-colonial partition of the subcontinent in 1947.
The religious divide and struggle for power between Hindus and Muslims resulted in uncontrollable riots and thousands had to flee from home. Jammu and Kashmir’s Hindu Maharaja Hari Singh decided to keep his state independent despite the majority of the population being Muslim. He turned down requests for joining Pakistan from the country’s top political leaders. Later as threats of revolt by the countrymen and attacks by Pakistan increased and communal killings got out of hand, Hari Singh agreed to access to India in exchange for military assistance. Instrument of Accession was signed by Hari Singh on 26th October 1947. The princely state of Kashmir became a part of India, which was the beginning of, what seems now, an eternal rivalry between two nations, sealed by the first Indo-Pak war that very year. After the subject was presented to the UN, a ceasefire between the two countries was called followed by several resolutions with the consent of both India and Pakistan. Kashmir, that was once called heaven on Earth, was ripped apart by the boundaries of two countries; Article 370 was created in India.The Kashmiris were given the right to keep Kashmir’s flag and constitution separate from those of India.
This Article was a hope for these Kashmiris that perhaps one day they would be given the referendum to vote to choose their fate.
Over the past decades, grappled by political conflicts, the people in Kashmir remained ignored, in lieu of territorial gains; it was forgotten, that a land up for grabs includes its people, no matter how insignificant they are thought to be in stately negotiations.
Curfews and strikes have remained a frequent phenomenon in Kashmir; it is as though their time is always ticking like a bomb waiting to explode. Many were murdered and tortured by the security forces over the decades; without the right to protest, they became mere scapegoats in their homeland. Even though India has a broad news media, reports stated that there are no local news channels in Kashmir. Moreover, according to an article on BBC, most people born after 1990 have not known peace their entire lives.
Kashmir 72 Years post-partition: Reign of Fear
The conditions in Kashmir are deteriorating. On 5th August 2019, India tried to snatch the special rights from Kashmir by annulment of Article 370. The number of military has been increased in a short span of time while Kashmir has been stripped of all network connections. Several accounts of merciless torture, extrajudicial killings by the military have been recorded; so much so, that even the medicine supply to Kashmir has been halted. While several international news channels showed videos of the heinous acts, the army called the accusations “baseless”. Young men were pulled out of their homes and tortured for days.
In effect, India is waging war on Kashmir, but it’s not war as most of us know it. It’s what many call ‘infrastructural war’, targeting civilians, restricting communication and travel in a significant way. India is hardly the first country to wage this kind of warfare: these have been used against Gaza, Lebanon, Iraq and Egypt, among others. Kashmiris will survive this latest siege, as it did in 2010, 2016 and many times before: but it will not be without cost.
The issue of Kashmir is far from being resolved. According to Imran Khan, he sent several letters to India to maintain peace among the two countries but found no response. What is going to be the fate of Kashmir is still unknown. Many young Kashmiris like Adil Ahmad Khan end up in the terrorist groups thinking they might be able to retrieve freedom. Hanging between the political affairs of the two countries, the people of Kashmir yearn for the peace they never received, and, perhaps, is still years, if not decades away from happening.