Kashmiri... Guilty until proven innocent

In the recent weeks of pro-independence protests in the India-Occupied-Kashmir, the world's biggest democracy, as it likes to call itself has managed to slaughter 30 Kashmiri civilians and injure scores more. The Indian troops have not hesitated to shoot at will and with the intent to kill. Most of those killed and injured have been shot in their heads, chest and abdomen with live rounds.

Even as the communal parties and propagandists of India go on to subject Kashmir to economic blockade, it was interesting to hear about the Home Ministers report to the Prime Minister of India. The poor Home Minister believes that there is no economic blockade, even though the ground situation begs to differ. Instead of around 1000 to 15000 trucks laden with goods and supplies, which is the per day traffic norm moving in and out of the Valley, the traffic has been below 200.

It continues to boggle my mind how a country which is so efficient when it comes to commit genocides of innocent Kashmiri civilians, manage to kill 20 in just two days, have been so incapable of preventing the terrorists from parties like the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Shiv Sena. It is even more shameful, because these and other similar communal terrorists organisations are recognised as main stream political parties in India.

The atrocities committed by Indian authorities in Kashmir is nothing new. Even in the most seemingly peaceful times, one or two killings of innocent Kashmiri civilians at the hands of the occupying Indian troopers is a routine. The occupying forces of India are facing the pinch of the pro-independence protests that have been on throughout the valley, the valley which was once an independent country in its own right. The soldiers have now resorted to barging into house holds in Kashmir and attack the inmates, without any discrimination of gender or age. In one such incident, the troopers of the Indian Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) stationed in Sopore, a famous apple town in Kashmir, attacked the inmates of one Sharrif-u-Din. Although there is not much in a name unless there is a person behind the name, which in this case was. It was Justice Malik Sharrif-u-Din's house which the Indian soldiers attacked. It is worthy of mention that the justice has served as a High court Judge in New-Delhi, the capital of India. He was the first muslim and first Kashmiri Judge on that post and has been at the helm of many high profile cases, like that of the Indira Gandhi assassination case. Although the judge had served the country, which arguably was never his, he had been at the most respected and revered positions in India, this was no reason for the Indian troopers to hesitate. For Indians he was just another Kashmiri, who was who he was...a Kashmiri Muslim.

As India celebrates its 61 year of independence tonight, this marks another day of "Yoem-e-Siah" (Black Day) in the 20 years of the struggle of Kashmir for its independence from the Occupying forces of India.