NOVANEWS
By Sajjad Shaukat
Every year, the martyrdom anniversary of Muhammad Afzal Gur is being celebrated on the 9th
of February to pay homage to him, as India secretly hanged him and buried inside the Tihar jail
complex on February 9, 2013. His martyrdom resulted into protests in Kashmir and widespread
condemnations from various political and human rights organisations. Afzal Guru was convicted
in 2001 Parliament attack case and awarded death sentence. Afzal had always denied plotting the
attack, which left 14 dead, including five militants.
In the past three years, during his martyrdom anniversary, a complete shutdown was observed in
the Indian occupied Kashmir and protest demonstrations were held to demand the return of
mortal remains of Afzal Guru.
Call for the strike had been given by pro-freedom leaders and organizations to mark the
anniversary of Muhammad Afzal. Indian authorities had arrested Kashmiri leaders, Yasin Malik,
Shoukat Bakhshi, Muhammad Yousuf Naqash and Mukhtar Ahmad Waza along with several
other Hurriyet activists and lodged them in different police stations and jails. The authorities also
placed Hurriyet leaders, Shabbir Ahmad Shah, Muhammad Ashraf Sehrai, Nayeem Ahmad Khan
and Ayaz Akbar under house arrest.
All Parties Hurriyat Conference (G) Chairman Syed Ali Geelani, in a statement had denounced
the arrests and vowed that the Kashmiris were struggling for their basic right and would succeed
in their mission at the end of the day.
In their statements and meetings, all the leaders of the freedom movement of Kashmir paid
glowing tributes to the martyr Muhammad Afzal Guru who sacrificed his live for the Kashmir
cause.
Even, the Sikh organization, Dal Khalsa President H S Dhami, while paying tributes to
Muhammad Afzal Guru on the eve of his second martyrdom anniversary, in a statement in
Amritsar criticized India for failing to hand over his mortal remains to his wife.
In fact, the very tragedy of Kashmiris had started after 1947 when they were denied their genuine
right of self-determination. They organized themselves against the injustices of India and
launched a war of liberation which New Delhi tried to crush through various forms of brutalities.
It is notable that since 1947, in order to maintain its illegal control, India has continued its
repressive regime in the Occupied Kashmir through various machinations.
However, various forms of state terrorism have been part of a deliberate campaign by the Indian
army and paramilitary forces against Muslim Kashmiris, especially since 1989. It has been
manifested in brutal tactics like crackdowns, curfews, illegal detentions, massacre, targeted
killings, sieges, burning the houses, torture, disappearances, rape, breaking the legs, molestation
of Muslim women and killing of persons through fake encounter.
According to a report on human rights violations in the Indian Occupied Kashmir, since 1989,
there have been deaths of 1,00000 innocent Kashmiris, 7,023 custodial killings, 1,22,771 arrests,
1,05,996 destruction of houses or buildings, 22,776 women widowed, 1,07,466 children
orphaned and 10,086 women gang-raped/molested. Indian brutal securities forces have continue
these atrocities.
While, Indian forces have employed various draconian laws like the Jammu and Kashmir
Disturbed Areas Act, and the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act and
Public Safety Act in killing the Kashmiri people, and for the arbitrarily arrest of any individual
for an indefinite period.
Besides Human Rights Watch, in its various reports, Amnesty International has also pointed out
grave human rights violations in the Indian controlled Kashmir, indicating, “The Muslim
majority population in the Kashmir Valley suffers from the repressive tactics of the security
forces.
In its report on July 2, 2015, the Amnesty International has highlighted extrajudicial killings of
the innocent persons at the hands of Indian security forces in the Indian Held Kashmir. The
report points out, “Tens of thousands of security forces are deployed in Indian-administered
Kashmir…the Armed Forces Special Powers Act allows troops to shoot to kill suspected
militants or arrest them without a warrant…not a single member of the armed forces has been
tried in a civilian court for violating human rights in Kashmir…this lack of accountability has in
turn facilitated other serious abuses…India has martyred one 100,000 people. More than 8,000
disappeared (while) in the custody of army and state police.”
In this respect, European Union has passed a resolution about human rights abuses committed by
Indian forces in the Indian held Kashmir.
It is mentionable that in 2008, a rights group reported unmarked graves in 55 villages across the
northern regions of the Indian-held Kashmir. Then researchers and other groups reported finding
thousands of mass graves without markers. In this respect, in August, 2011, Indian Jammu and
Kashmir State Human Rights Commission officially acknowledged in its report that innocent
civilians killed in the two-decade conflict have been buried in unmarked graves.
Notably, foreign sources and human rights organisations have revealed that unnamed graves
include those innocent persons, killed by the Indian military and paramilitary troops in the fake
encounters including those who were tortured to death by the Indian secret agency RAW.
Meanwhile, like the previous year, Pakistan’s recent serious and sincere effort at the annual
session of the United Nations—the speech of Pakistan’s prime minister, highlighting the Indian
atrocities, Kashmir dispute and demanding its solution has infused a new spirit among the
Kashmiri people.
But, New Delhi is still showing its intransigence in order to resolve Kashmir dispute with
Pakistan by neglecting the fact that Kashmir remains a nuclear flashpoint between both the
neighbouring countries.
Nevertheless, this time, the very day has come at time when the people of Kashmir have
accelerated their legitimate struggle in the aftermath of the martyrdom of the young Kashmir
leader Burhan Wani by the Indian security forces in the Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) in wake
of continued sieges and prolonged curfews. Since July 8, 2016, Indian forces have martyred
more than 150 innocent persons who have been protesting against the martyrdom of Burhan
Wani and for liberation of their land.
By manipulating the false flag terror attacks at a military base in Uri and Baramulla, the BJP-led
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also intensified war-hysteria against Pakistan. After
deployment of heavy arms and weapons at the Line of Control (LoC), Indian forces have
increased troops and continue shelling in Pakistani side of Azad Kashmir. And Pakistani troops
are giving matching response to Indian unprovoked firing across the LoC and are well-prepared
for Indian another surgical strikes, as threatened by Indian new army Chief Army Chief Gen.
Dalbir Singh Suhaag. New Delhi’s main aim is to deflect the attention of the international
community from the new phase of Kashmiri Intifada, while pressure has been mounting on the
Modi government both domestically and internationally to resolve the issue of Kashmir with
Pakistan.
In response, Pakistan’s Army Chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa on January 5, 2016 rejected claims
by his Indian counterpart Gen. Bipin Rawat about “so-called surgical strikes” and their possible
recurrence.
According to ISPR, Army Chief Gen. Qamar Bajwa made it clear that “Pakistan Armed Forces
were fully geared to respond to any aggression by India.”
It is of particular attention that like the teror asaults at Pathonkot air base, in Mumbai and at
Indian parliament were orchestrated by the Indian security agencies to obtain several sinister
designs against Islamabad such as suspention of the process of Pak-Indian dialogue, shift of
blame game to Pakistan’s primary intelligence agency ISI etc. While, on July 19, 2013, the
Indian ex-investigating officer Satish Verma disclosed that terror-attacks in Mumbai in
November 26, 2008 and assault on Indian Parliament in January 12, 2001 were carried out by the
Indian government to strengthen anti-terrorism laws.
Nonetheless, Indian authorities are not willing to talk with Kashmiri people on political grounds.
New Delhi reached to a conclusion that only bullet is the right way of dealing with Kashmiris,
demanding their right of self-determination. Surprisingly, Indian successive governments are
trying to ignore the dynamics of the freedom movement of Kashmiris for the sake of their alien
rule.
Undoubtedly, the martyrdom of Muhammad Afzal Guru infused a new spirit into the Kashmir
movement keeps is alive today. His martyrdom anniversary provides an opportunity to ponder
over the fact that various countries of the world got independence by sacrificing their precious
lives. On this vary day, the best way to pay homage to the hero of Kashmir movement,
Muhammad Afzal Guru is that all the Kashmiris must renew their pledge to take the war of
liberation to its logical end.
