Flays Delhi For Guru Hanging, Says Indian Civil Society Govts Fire-Fighters
SRINAGAR: Freed after several weeks of house arrest, the chairman of the JKLF, Muhammad Yasin Malik, on Tuesday announced to hold a 48 hour hunger strike at the Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on May 3 against what he termed as one-sided state violence against Kashmiris.
At a press conference, his first since the Gurus secret hanging burial in the Tihar Jail on February 9, Malik said that state suppression would create desperation among Valley youth who, according to him, would then resort to other means.
The JKLF chief castigated the central government for the execution of Muhammad Afzal Guru, and said that the secret hanging was murder of justice.
The Indian president, who claims to be the champion of democratic rights and the head of the largest democratic country in the world, is actually responsible for the murder of Afzal Guru, Malik said.
Whenever the president rejects any mercy petition, the accused has a right to move the Court, but in this case the mercy petition of Afzal was rejected secretly and he was deprived of this right, he said.
The police itself had said on March 11 that it had arrested 338 youth. It lodged some two to three thousand youth in different police stations of Kashmir valley to suppress the sentiments of people. Even minors were not spared, and the Public Safety Act was slapped on them, he said.
The PSA was invoked against Adil Ashraf Khan, Zubir Ahmed Turray, Shakir Ahmed Mir, Junaid Wani, Javid Ahmed, Arooj Ahmed Bhat, Adil Dar, Dawood Ahmed and on a minor boy Asif Ahmed Shakhsaaz from Hazratbal area, he said.
Malik said that hundreds of youth were still languishing in different jails.
The movement of most political leaders, including Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Shabir Ahmed Shah, Javid Ahmed, and Nayeem Ahmed Khan has been restricted, some of them have been arrested. My simple question to the director general of police is that on how many days did he force Kashmiri people to stay in their houses, Malik said.
The Muttahida Majlis Mashawrat gave only a few strike calls, while it was the police which forced people to stay indoors, he said.
Urging people to follow the MMM programme, Malik was all praise for the Majlis for not putting people to trouble.
The MMM gave fewer strike calls in the interest of people. I appeal people to follow MMM and protest after Friday prayers. I will lead a protest in Lal Chowk myself after Friday prayers, Malik said.
Malik said that in the wake of the execution of Afzal Guru, he had postponed his hunger strike, and that he had decided to hold a 48-hour hunger strike at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi against the life sentences awarded to Kashmiris, as well as against the random arrests of youth in Valley.
Coming down heavily on Indian Civil Society, Malik said that their only job was to act as fire fighters.
Whenever people are on roads, the Indian Civil Society visits Kashmir, and once peace prevails they forget everything, he said.
Malik said assurances given to the then militants in prison in 1994 by civil society members from India, US and European Union had proved false.
We were promised space for a peaceful struggle, but nothing of that sort happened. Youth who had picked up guns were released and now the same have been slapped with life sentences, he said.
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