Reply To Chetan Bhagat, When Vanity Overtook Your Meekness

By Shahid Lone

24 April, 2016
Countercurrents.org

Mr Chetan Baghat,

Since a few of my colleagues have already sent you schooling manuals pertaining to Kashmir dispute but I am damn sure, you won’t take out your black aviator and merit the things as they are. So, allow me to trespass your valuable time by laying down a few lines of factual considerations there to: In your theatrical and euphemistically open letter to kashmiri’s like me, which rationally lacked kosher concreteness from historical and political frames, shouldered me with a responsibility to make you aware of few facts. Lets analyze your letter in a phased manner.

Firstly, you are right when you say “something terrible is happening in Kashmir” but let me take your memory to ride in conflict ridden history of Kashmir. All the terrible episodes in Kashmir, for which history will never be kind on India, dates back to partition of India, when Kashmir was left as an unfinished business by British empire and India profited by sending its troops to valley and till date continues the very same trend, which was resisted violently and non-violently through every means by kashmiris and hence impressed Pandit Nehru to take up the matter to United Nations, wherein India was directed to hold free and fair plebiscite in the state but till date, it has failed to mature even after so many UN resolutions. Mr. baghat, doesn't the spirit of rationality demand to fulfil this legitemate demand of kashmiris? Space demands me to keep it brief but I advise you, kindly wear a transparent glass and re check your facts, if any, and don’t term it as ‘something terrible’, it merits, by every frame of reference to qualify a “GENOCIDE”.

Secondly, like an emotional and patriot Indian, you want Kashmiris to assimilate with a country which is super poor, where water for IPL matches is more important than precious life of farmers, where strategies and laws are first made at Nagpur and than in the parliament. I mean really! I wonder what made you to write that? May be a birth in the ruling party is on the cards. Even basic parameters and premises of assimilation don't give us this luxury. linguistically, culturally socially, historically, geographically, we share nothing in common. To put it more candidly, heaven and hell by their very nature are bound to exist separately, so no more vomiting please! Albeit cultural assimilation in Kashmir engineered by your Pseudo-secular and Neo- liberal puppets is on the rise and is a clarion call for us.

Thirdly you were supposed to tell how future is best but like your other cynical ilks, you took the tough task of teaching history, gender studies, peace and conflict et`al and still failed miserably because your vanity overtook your meekness and you fondled with opportunism. The pain your state has inflicted on us, has culminated in a belief where every event and date is remembered, so no more fiction here!

Fourthly, let me detail you few statistics about why occupying Indian state and Indian army earned the reputation of not only we hate India but “Go India, Go back”. Since 1990, Indian armed forces have unleashed on kashmiris like beasts and brutally killed over 1, 00,000 people, raped more than 5000 women, enforced the disappearance of 10,000 men. Does it suffice the argument or do you wish an entire column to be dedicated on statistics?

Kashmir with its abundant and immense Hydro-electric potential supplies 80 % of electricity to the entire northern region of India, 17 % airline and tourism revenue on an average is annually received by India from valley alone. Our carpet industry is famous all over the globe and contributes 0.84 % to indian GDP ( KEA, 2012-13) and yet it appears to you as a tiny stub. Let me give you another view of strong our economy is. When Valley was cut off at stretch with the rest of the world for months during brutal reign of Omar Abdullah, we didn’t die out of poverty, hunger and starvation, unlike India where one such day could lead to loss of thousands of lives and next day you will find your PM announcing relief packages for them.

You don’t consider Pakistan as a real economy, yet your government interferes in the development of China Pakistan Economic Corridor. Creating turbulence and impediments in Pakistan’s development route and time and again trying to destabilize it with covert operations in FATA, Waziristan and Afghanistan itself speaks of your hypocrisy and concocted narrative on this front. My humble plea to you is, concentrate on judging dance shows and fiction and don't lecture us on Geo-Politics and International Relations.

Please allow me to give you a fair and settling view of women’s rights under your so called terminology of “fundamental Islam". We only follow the religion, which in bold and caps is written in books as ISLAM and not as moderate or extremist, leftist or rightist but yes we try our utmost to stick to its very fundamentals. If adhering and abiding by the fundamentals of one’s religion makes him a fundamentalist, then we muslims feel proud under this brand.

Over 1400 years ago, Islam gave women rights that Indian society has only recently begin to enjoy. Actually there are no such kinds of special rights which men have and women don’t. Like men, women can attain education, they are free to work, free to choose their spouse and marry, assist and lead in wars et`al. For more details and schooling on this particular subject and prognostication of your naivete , kindly refer to “Historical role of Islam” by M N Roy.

Not only article 370 but we will get rid of whole constitution, you know what, it stinks and suffocates now and is too old a burden to be carried in 21st century but only when we free ourselves from the clutches of Indian oppression.

My resistance is stronger. When I look back over my shoulder; I look for your eyes, eyes filled with hatred, coldness and thirst for blood. I feel your oppression crawling on my back. Here are my mothers, my sisters and my brothers. I am here, in the fight against oppression and occupation. Me, carrying my pain and my bitterness I'm not seeding hate. I don't fight with weapons. I fight with my words.

We will raise our voices for us, for our children, for freedom of Kashmir. We will fight for every drop of blood and for every tree on our shore. We will return children to mothers and mothers to homes. We will return peace to weary warriors. We will return laughter to life.

AS-SALAM AS SALAM, AE-SHAHEEDO AS SALAM

(Author is a narrative journalist and his columns have been carried by various international dailies. )