16-year-old stone pelters reject 60-year-old militant’s advice
Hizb chief’s effigies burnt in Sopore; Hurriyat (G) issues fresh shutdown calendar

Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

SRINAGAR, Jul 24: In continued absence of direction and leadership, young stone pelters have turned down Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salah-ud-din’s advice against enforcing endless shutdowns in the economically and educationally shattered Kashmir valley. While hardline supporters of the radical separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani have issued a fresh shutdown calendar, angry youngsters in Srinagar, Pulwama and Sopore have staged demonstrations against the Pakistan-based Kashmiri “Supreme Commander” of Hizbul Mujahideen, asking him not to damage their “freedom struggle” with “unwarranted moderation and unilateral flexibility”.

Official sources told Early Times that a group of 50 to 60 youth gathered on the streets in Chhaan Khann locality of Sopore in the forenoon today. Expressing their anger against Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salah-ud-din’s statement that the Kashmiris needed no more endless strikes, they resolved to continue their agitation under the banner of ‘Quit Jammu & Kashmir’. Sources said that the angry crowd bunt Hizb chief’s effigies but vanished quickly. An identical group, though thinner in size, came out on the streets in Nowhatta area of downtown Srinagar, burnt an effigy of the Hizb commander and shouted slogans.

The youngsters were heard yelling that the militant commander “enjoying life in Pakistan” was aware neither of the ground realities in Kashmir nor of the “peoples’ aspiration”. They too vowed to continue their agitation including enforcing shutdowns and stone pelting against Police and CRPF.

Later, a group of six masked men, believed to be in age group of 16 to 26 years, addressed a quickly organized press conference in close vicinity of Gandhi Memorial College in downtown Srinagar. They too expressed critical sentiments against the Hizbul Mujahideen chief’s “unwarranted moderation and unilateral flexibility” and declared that they would continue to enforce shutdowns “in the best interests of our freedom movement”.

This is first time that such groups appeared on the streets and for the first time in over 20 years somebody dared to burnt effigy of a senior militant commander. Speculation were in circulation for the whole day with regard to identity of these rebels as some people suspected them supporters of hardliners like Massarat Alam and Asiya Andrabi and quite a few took them as saboteurs planted by Police and intelligence agencies.

Sources said that after several days of undeclared curfew restrictions, there was no resistance to the pedestrian or vehicular traffic by Police or paramilitary forces in downtown Srinagar today. However, almost all shops and business establishments, besides banks and government offices, remained closed in downtown, as well as in Civil Lines marketplaces of Lalchowk, Maulana Azad Road, Hari Singh High Street and Residency Road, in accordance with the shutdown calendar in force since last week. Large number of shops were open in uptown localities where official and civilian traffic plied without any disruption but commercial traffic was off the road.

Reports said that some people also expressed their displeasure over the Hizbul Muhahideen chief’s statement at Kakapora, Pulwama, and asserted that shutdown should continue as it had, according to them “brought India on her kneels”.

According to reports available from rural district headquarters, shutdown was complete in half-a-dozen major towns but partial bandh was observed in most of the towns. A large number of government employees resumed their duties and shopkeepers their businesses after they read Hizbul Muhahideen chief’s statement in the morning newspapers today. Syed Salah-ud-din, in an interview to KNS yesterday, had advised the separatist leaders against calling any more endless strikes and instead forge unity.

Reports said that hundreds of people staged sit-in demonstrations in their residential localities in Baramulla in accordance with Hurriyat Geelani’s call issued last week. Reports of stone pelting and clashes came in from Kupwara, Sopore, Baramulla and few other localities. However, nobody was reported dead or injured in today’s clashes.

Meanwhile, hardline faction of the Hurriyat Conference, led by detained octogenarian leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, issued a fresh shutdown calendar in continuity of its “Quit Jammu & Kashmir” agitation. The outfit called upon the Kashmiris to observe total shutdown on July 26th, hold routine business on July 27th, arrange sin-in demonstrations on the streets in their neighbourhoods on July 28th and 29th, perform congregational Friday prayers in local mosques and stage demonstrations on July 30th, resume their usual business on full day on July 31st and observe yet another complete shutdown on August 1st.

The organization has also asked the Kashmiris to stop paying VAT, sales tax, electricity and water bills from July 28th. It has directed officials of PDD, PHE and Commercial Taxes Department not to collect any taxes from the people from July 28th and indicated that more departments would be included in due course of time.

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