SrinagarIncarcerated chairman of Hurriyat Conference (M), Mirwaiz Umar Farooq condemned the government for disallowing congregational Friday prayers at the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar and sealing of the grand mosque on the auspicious occasion of Mehraj-e-Alam.
In a statement, Mirwaiz also denounced the governments decision of imposing strict curfew in downtown Srinagar majority of South Kashmir areas and caging resistance leaders either in their homes or in police stations terming it as the dictatorship of the state.
Repeated curbs curfews and restrictions is the acceptance of moral defeat of failed rulers, he added.
Mirwaiz said that the ruling dispensation has thrown every principle of democracy to the winds only to secure its chair and hang on to it. Every right of civilians human, political, social or religious is violated with impunity through use of brute force and there is complete lack of accountability. Even the basic right to life is a huge casualty in Kashmir. People are not even safe within the four walls of their homes and are killed indiscriminately by the forces, he added.
Expressing anguish and serious concern over the targeted killing of Kashmirs young which has almost become a daily affair in Kashmir, he said that killing and repression are used as policy to force people and the resistance leadership into submission.
Mirwaiz said that Kashmir dispute is a reality and use of force cannot deter a people who have been unrelentingly struggling for the past 30 years in particular, in the face of worst repression and despite Indian states huge military presence and might on ground here.
If 30 years of oppression despite tremendous sacrifices and loss could not make us give up fighting for the realisation of our just political cause, does it not convey that people will not yield to force come what may. Today our youth are forced to take up arms as a natural reaction to oppression and repression, he said.
On the brutal rape and murder of minor Asifa of Kathua, Mirwaiz termed the heinous crime an open assault on humanity and civilisation. That any humans can stoop to such level for the fulfilment of their nefarious agenda of eviction of a small community of bakerwals and then rallies and bands are organised in support of such beasts is unbelievable, he said.
Mirwaiz said that every human irrespective of their religion, ideology, belief or background should in unison demand an exemplary punishment for these beasts who have shamed mankind. To fall prey to the communalisation of such incident and support rallies and bandhs in its favor does no good to the community that is doing so in fact it brings shame to them, Mirwaiz added.
Meanwhile, on the call of Joint Resistance leadership, massive protest rallies were held across Kashmir against the civilian killings in Khudwani, Kulgam and the horrific rape and murder of minor Asifa.
Leaders and activists from APHC, staged a massive protest at Lal Bazar in which Mushtaq Ahmed Sofi, Advocate yasir Dalal, Farooq Ahmed Saudagar, Muhammad Yosuf Bhat, Sahil Ahmed War, Muhammad Sidiq Hazar, Bashir Ahmed others participated.
The protests were demanding strict punishment to those involved in the rape and murder of Asifa.
The spokesman strongly condemned the house detention of Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Syed Ali Geelani, and lodgment of Muhammad Yasin Malik and Hilal Ahmed War in Central Jail Srinagar, raiding the house of senior leader Ghulam Nabi Zaki, sealing Jamia Masjid, Srinagar, and turning entire downtown and south Kashmir into a military garrison terming it as ultimate repression and state terrorism.
Parts of Srinagar witness heavy security
To prevent separatist called protests against civilian killings security was heightened in some parts of Srinagar city on Friday.
The Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL), a separatist conglomerate headed by Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq and Muhammad Yasin Malik, has called for peaceful protests after the congregational Friday prayers against killing of four civilians in Kulgam district on Wednesday.
While Geelani and Mirwaiz have been placed under house arrest, Malik has been lodged in the Srinagar Central Jail. Government on Friday disallowed Friday prayers at historic Jamia Masjid. In the areas of downtown heavy deployment of police and paramilitary forces was made to patrol the streets and restrict peoples movement.
Mobile Internet services continue to remain suspended in south Kashmir areas since Thursday while the speed of mobile Internet has been slashed in Srinagar.
Train services between Baramulla and Bannihal towns have been suspended.
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