News Analysis |
On 18th January 2019, a grenade attack was observed at the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) party, near the iconic landmark of Lal Chowk, marking the second ‘militant’ attack reported by the Indian authorities in Srinagar. A day earlier, a grenade attack was observed near the Zero Bridge, which injured three police officials.
The Indian media has been reporting the emergence of the brutal international terror organization, the Islamic State, within Kashmir since 2016. However, these allegations reemerged dramatically towards the end of 2018. Many international publications, including TRT, have talked about the Indian propaganda regarding the presence of Daesh in Indian occupied Kashmir.
In recent news, the death of a 25-year old Kashmiri woman, who was shot down in an ISIS-style execution, is doing rounds on Indian media. Reports suggest that the Kashmir woman was killed in an ISIS style execution, and during the last three months, three such executions have taken place in Kashmir.
Mirwaiz cleaned the pulpit with his own hands and addressed the gathering. “The entire community is disheartened and beseeches the authorities to identify the elements that have desecrated the sanctity of the Jamia Masjid.”
Indian news reports reveal that these ISIS-style executions are performed by the “militants in south Kashmir”, who are involved in abducting and killing civilians that are “police informers”.
On 30th December 2018, a group of masked men entered the historical Jamia Masjid of Srinagar, and hoisted the ISIS flags, creating a ruckus in the mosque after the Friday congregational prayers. The mosque was almost empty, and the few devotees present at the scene reported that the masked men with the ISIS flags began shouting slogans, and one even climbed atop the pulpit where chief cleric and separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq delivers the sermon. The masked men also made videos, which were later circulated on social media.
The masked group of men was chased away, and their actions were condemned by Mirwaiz and other Hurriyat leaders, including Muhammad Yasin Malik and Syed Ali Shah Geelani.
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On 2nd January, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq led a powerful rally to protest the violation of the Jamia Masjid by the masked men carrying ISIS flags. Activists led by Mirwaiz marched from Rajouri Kadal to the Jamia Masjid and shouted slogans against the violation of the mosque’s sanctity.
Mirwaiz cleaned the pulpit with his own hands and addressed the gathering. “The entire community is disheartened and beseeches the authorities to identify the elements that have desecrated the sanctity of the Jamia Masjid.”
“We will not tolerate these elements that are slandering our just right to self-determination and attempting to alter the direction of our struggle”, said Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.
These maligning schemes and propaganda by India clearly indicate its acceptance that Kashmiris struggle for the right of self-determination cannot be suppressed even after all the atrocities India could possibly commit.
In 2018, Indian media has released reports against three ‘militants’ from Srinagar who have found to be ISIS operatives and have been gunned down by the Indian forces. Arnab Goswami, a leading Indian journalist and TV anchor, who has been widely accused of exaggerating and even fabricating reports from Kashmir, leveled accusations against senior separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani of harboring ties with Daesh and facilitating their presence in Kashmir.
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While speaking to an international publication, separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq negated the presence of Daesh and ISIS extremists in Kashmir, and he stressed that the violation of the Jamia Masjid was an act undertaken by “Indian agencies” that seek to malign the Kashmiri struggle for self-determination and criminalize their demand for freedom.
“Jamia Masjid is a religious and political center, and over the years, it has emerged as a symbol of resistance. The agencies (Indian) seek to deprive the Kashmiris of this space. Such elements are reshaping the narrative of our struggle and maligning it with the footprints of hidden international agendas. It is important to understand that our struggle is well-defined and limited to the region of Kashmir”, said Mirwaiz.
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Ess Ahmed Pirzada, the senior journalist and editor of Weekly Momin in Srinagar, dispelled all rumors of Daesh in Kashmir as “propaganda staged by Indian media” and clarified that no such activities are observed amongst the Kashmiri youth.
“Last year, a woman from an Indian news channel arrived in Srinagar and rounded up some boys from Downtown, who were taken into a room and given ISIS flags to create a story for her channel. Iftikhar Gillani did a comprehensive story on this issue in DNA. The Indian agencies are using all these tactics to undermine the popularity of the Pakistani flag but they have failed to malign our narrative. The Pakistani flag has immense significance amongst our people, and the martyrs make requests to be buried in the Pakistani flag”.
The simple act of raising ISIS flags in protests and the Jamia Masjid incident has been greatly sensationalized across Indian media, and several news anchors have stirred the debate with allegations that the Kashmiri struggle for freedom is now “taken over by the global expansionist agenda of Daesh”.
This area has become a major headache for Indian authorities with its rampant protests and resistance, which is why the Indian agencies are focusing on this area to malign its reputation and undermine the protests for freedom.
In a recent interview with an international publication, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq nullified these allegations. “There is no support or structure for an organization like Islamic State within Kashmir. Some young boys are rounded up to wave the ISIS flags on protests and Friday prayers, and the Indian media provides them with a great deal of coverage. However, the Kashmiris separatists and youth are unfazed by these tactics”.
Ess Ahmed Pirzada further clarified the malignant strategies of Indian agencies with regards to the Jamia Masjid incident. “The area of the Jamia Masjid is the political den of Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, who has complete control over this region. This area has become a major headache for Indian authorities with its rampant protests and resistance, which is why the Indian agencies are focusing on this area to malign its reputation and undermine the protests for freedom.”
These maligning schemes and propaganda by India clearly indicate its acceptance that Kashmiris struggle for the right of self-determination cannot be suppressed even after all the atrocities India could possibly commit. However, it has undermined the fact that the same channel is used for the propaganda, can reveal the actual events happening on the ground.
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Kashmiri’s struggle and protests have always been peaceful; a fact globally known.
Mina Jahangir with additional input by News Desk.