Terming the mutual brotherhood and tolerance exhibited by the people of Kashmir as exemplary, Hurriyat (M) Chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq Friday said during the past 25 years, people of Kashmir despite witnessing atrocities at the hands of the government and despite being witness to the killings of their near and dear ones, had kept their centuries old tradition of tolerance and brotherhood alive.Citing examples of 2008 and 2010 summer uprisings in which hundreds of youth lost their life to the bullets of the government forces, no harm was done to any outsider whether tourist or otherwise who were in thousands present in the valley at that time.Again in the devastating floods of September 2014 when non-Kashmiris in large numbers were stuck in Srinagar, the Mirwaiz said it was the Kashmiri youth who had rescued them out from the flood waters thus proved that Kashmiris had no personal animosity against the people of India but were fighting for their just rights and the injustices committed against them.
Addressing a large congregation at Srinagar’s historical Jamia mosque before the Friday prayers, he said students from outside the J&K state studying in Kashmir were safe and whatever has been witnessed in NIT, Srinagar for the past few days was unfortunate.Stressing that few political parties and a section of Indian electronic media while reporting in this matter indulged in projecting these incidents in a twisted manner, the Hurriyat (M) Chairman said it was a deliberate attempt to pitch Hindus versus Muslims and local students versus non-local students with a purpose to create a divide in the students for their petty vested interests.He said this was being done with an intention to create an impression that non-locals and outside-state students were not safe in Kashmir and some unscrupulous elements even demanded shifting of NIT, Srinagar to some other place, which is ridiculous and condemnable.Questioning political circles indulging in cheap publicity, the Mirwaiz said why they didn’t come forward when Kashmiri students were being harassed, victimized and beaten in Rajasthan, Meerut and at other places of India? Why didn’t they raise their voice when Kashmiri students were being expelled from different colleges at these places?Urging students including non local students studying in NIT and other institutions of Jammu Kashmir to focus on their studies instead of getting misled by the opportunistic Politicians and divisive forces, he commended the Kashmiri students in NIT, Kashmir University and others institutions for showing patience and maturity and not getting provoked and instigated by the elements who want them to react negatively.Appealing the corporate sector of Jammu and Kashmir to invest in education sector the way they were investing in construction of hotels, industries and other businesses so that more and more educational institutions could come up in Kashmir which, the Chairman said, could reduce the dependence of the Kashmiri students on the educational institutions outside the state.
He said it was a reality that Kashmiri students studying in various educational institutions outside the state and their parents always felt apprehensive about their safety due to the changed atmosphere in India.Expressing hope that the India-Pakistan dialogue process would move ahead, the Mirwaiz said Kashmiri people have always stood for cordial relations between New Delhi and Islamabad but the reality was that dialogue over issues like Sir Creek, Siachen, water and trade between the two countries cannot move forward until they address the basic issue of Kashmir he further stressed that for resolving Kashmir and all other issues between the two countries it was imperative upon them to carry forward the dialogue process with seriousness and in a purposeful manner. He urged the political leadership of the two countries to take advantage of the political climate developing in the region the Hurriyat (M) Chairman the leadership of the two countries need to show vision and showing farsightedness by taking steps to resolve Kashmir and all other outstanding issues.Calling for imposing ban on the sale of liquor in Jammu Kashmir, the Hurriyat (M) Chairman also stressed on having Islamic (Interest Free) banking in Kashmir and said that the Jammu Kashmir Muttahida Majlis-Ulema in its next meeting would delve in detail on both the issues and devise a strategy for putting efforts to get Kashmiri society rid of the menace of liquor, drugs and other social evils.On the occasion, he also paid glowing tributes to the youth martyred in Pulwama and Shopian during the past few days and prayed to the Almighty Allah to grant them Jannat-ul-Firdous to them. (KNS)