Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 12: Kashmir Policy & Strategy Group organized a webinar on the topic ‘Civilian Killings in Kashmir: Cause, Effect & Remedies’ where the educated youth and intelligentsia opined that Pakistan is the main villain of peace and progress in Kashmir.
Opening the webinar, the Group Chairman, Ashok Bhan said the recent spate of selective civilian killings in Kashmir is a crude game plan of Pakistani handlers of local terrorists to revive waning militancy.
“The killing of one innocent civilian and scaring a thousand tactics is failing because of large scale protests by Kashmiris against such cowardly acts of militants,” Bhan said, adding that the Kashmiris have rejected Pakistan in the past and they are rejecting her now.
Speaking in the webinar, Manzoor Ahmed Shah, Solicitor-from London and a native of Pulwama said that violence in the name of Jihad has caused negative opinion of Islam not only in Kashmir but all over the world. “There is a need to reach out to the youth who have misplaced concept of Islam and educate them on the real peaceful message of Islamic teachings. It is also duty of parents to impart right religious and secular knowledge to their children, so that they can differentiate between right and wrong. Religious scholars must also propagate the true message of peace and brotherhood of Islam. Government of India can also establish secular institute of Islamic studies to make available right teachings of Islam to younger generation,” he added.
Junaid Mir, President, JK Workers Party, opined that abrogation of Article 370 has brought radical changes in Kashmir valley as terrorist activities have gone drastically down in last two years. “Recent civilian killings are just acts of desperation on part of Pakistan and terrorism in action to create fear in the minds of both Kashmiris and non-Kashmiris living in Kashmir valley. There is a need for mass condemnation of these civilian killings. We need to educate Kashmir’s younger generation about Kashmir’s secular heritage to counter Islamic radicalization including de-radicalization programs supplemented by creating more employment opportunities to wean away youth of Kashmir from destruction activities,” he said, adding that Kashmir’s future lies in being a secular, liberal and pluralistic society.
Manmeet Bali Nag, a Kashmiri Sikh and Cultural critic, said that Sikh community of Kashmir is at precarious position as recently civilian killings have also targeted Sikhs. “Majority community of Kashmir has most responsibility to safeguard its religious minority. They must not pay just the lip service but they must really create conditions conducive for co-existence. A wrong narrative of Islam has taken place amongst Muslim community of Kashmir valley, which should be confronted and corrected. Muslims must teach their children, the right secular and cultural ethos of Kashmir to get not just Kashmir’s religious minorities but entire Kashmiri society out of precarious situation,” he stressed.
Javed Beigh, General Secy, Peoples Democratic Front, said that Pakistan remains main cause of past and present civilian killings in Kashmir valley. “The present spate of civilian killings that targeted mostly Hindus, Sikhs and migrant laborers are due to Punjabi Pakistani Muslim mindset that has no value for non-Muslim lives, especially those of Hindus and Indians,” he said and stressed that we must make our younger generation of Kashmir sensitive towards killings of non-Muslims.
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