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Anger should not be taken out on people of Kashmir: Mehbooba
J&K was passing through a dangerous phase, while stating that it was time for reflection for the people of J&K to ascertain why “our educated youth are preferring death over life”, said PDP chief
Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday said that there was a wave of anger and fear across the country, the brunt for which is being faced by lakhs of Kashmiri business people like shawl vendors and students in various colleges, adding that anger should not be directed at Kashmiris.
“There is no doubt in the fact that whatever happened in Delhi is condemnable and people of the country are angry. And there is fear as well but it does not mean that the people of J&K , doing business or studying in their own country, become targets of that anger,” the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister said.
“There are a handful of people involved in this incident(Delhi blast) but that doesn’t mean that you will give collective punishment to all the people. That won’t yield anything. We understand your pain. Those who lost their lives in Delhi also included (a) Kashmiri resident. That anger should not be directed at Kashmiris,” she said.
She further said that J&K was passing through a dangerous phase, while stating that it was time for reflection for the people of J&K to ascertain why “our educated youth are preferring death over life”.
Mufti urged for introspection from the society as a whole in J&K and wanted the intervention of religious scholars. “As a mother, I think this is a matter of reflection for the people of J&K that our youth, like doctors, who should have lived a constructive life for themselves and their society, are taking a dangerous path. They are preferring death over life. In this situation our religious scholars and leaders like Mirwaiz Umar Farooq need to come out and talk on this- that our youth should not follow this path,” Mufti told media after visiting the family of a Kashmiri labourer killed during Delhi car bomb blast.
“Most certainly, after 2019, the way Article 370 was revoked, people were put under pressure and there were arrests which caused a suffocating atmosphere but that doesn’t mean our youth turn their bodies into living bombs and take their lives and that of others as well. This should not happen,” she said.
She said that J&K was passing through a dangerous phase and our people are facing tribulations.
“The doctor who took part in this blast, not only did he take his own life or those of others but he made the life of people of J&K very difficult. Already we would be under suspicion, this has made us more susceptible to suspicion. And the life of people of J&K has become hard not only here but outside as well, “ she said.
Mufti urged chief minister Omar Abdullah to talk to the Prime Minister and Union home minister.
“People of J&K working or studying at different places are very scared,” she said.
“I will also talk to some people in Delhi to help our young boys and girls who are facing eviction from their accommodations, are being profiled in their colleges and are being harassed in every way. This will further increase distances and won’t solve the issue but complicate it,” she said.
Stereotyping of Kashmiris across country unfortunate: Sajad Lone
Peoples Conference president Sajad Lone also appealed to the PM and home minister to ensure that any citizen of India, including Kashmiris, were not harassed in their own country. “Reports of harassment of Kashmiris across India are coming in. Stereotyping of a Kashmiri unfortunately is a favourite hobby across the country. And it is not a new trend. It is just that it has become more chronic in the last decade,” Lone said on X.
“Yes there are radical lunatics in every society. But they are an aberration. And in case of Kashmir, the primary purpose of their actions is to ensure that the Kashmiri is harassed and chased away in his own country. And be used as fodder in the vicious cycle of alienation,” he said.
