National Conference on Monday lashed out at the Central and the State Government for supervising an “onslaught” on civilians in the Valley and said injustice in Kashmir had crossed all limits.
Led by National Conference General Secretary Ali Mohammad Sagar and Additional General Secretary Dr. Sheikh Mustafa Kamal, National Conference senior leaders, former parliament members, legislators, former legislators, district presidents and members of the party’s youth and women’s wing – hundreds of party workers and activists started their protest march from Party Headquarters Nawa-e-Subha Complex in Srinagar but were stopped by the Police near TRC.
Party legislators, Mian Altaf Ahmed, Mubarak Gul, Shameema Firdous, Mohammad Akbar Lone, Sheikh Ishfaq Jabar, Abdul Majid Larmi, Ali Mohammad Dar, Showkat Hussain Ganai as well as Party Leaders Dr. Sheikh Mustafa Kamal, Chowdhary Mohamamd Ramzan, Provincial President Nasir Aslam Wani, Sharif-ud-din Shariq, Mir Saifullah, Mohammad Sayed Akhoon, Javed Ahmed Dar, Ghulam Nabi Ratanpuri, District President Srinagar Peer Afaq Ahmed, Provincial Secretary Advocate Showkat Ahmed Mir, Minority Cell Head Jagdish Singh Azad, Provincial Youth President Salman Ali Sagar, Irfan Ahmed Shah, Mir Ghulam Rasool Naaz, Provincial Spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar, Haji Ghulam Rasool Shah Nowshehri, Youth Leaders Yawar Masoodi, Sabiya Qadri, Mudassir Shahmiri and various other party office bearers took part in the protest march.
Condemning the act of disallowing the party leaders, legislators and activists from carrying out the protest march, National Conference General Secretary lashed out at the State Government for unleashing a wave of “tyrannical repression” in the Valley where even democratic forces were being targeted and prevented from raising their voices.
The NC General Secretary said the Central Government should wake up from its deep slumber and look beyond protecting its own “inefficient and inept” State Government in the State and waste no further time in initiating a comprehensive and open-ended dialogue with Pakistan and the stakeholders in Kashmir, including the leadership of the Hurriyat Conference.
“There is no alternative to dialogue with Pakistan and stakeholders in Kashmir. Kashmir is an unresolved political issue and has to be dealt with politically. New Delhi’s failure to acknowledge the problem in Kashmir as a political problem will have far reaching, adverse implications on the region in general and the State in particular”, the NC General Secretary said while addressing media men during the protest march.
The NC General Secretary lashed out at the State Government and the Chief Minister for ordering an unprecedented and unimaginable wave of repression and terror on the people and said barbarism in the Valley had crossed all possible limits as more than fifty young men had lost their lives while more than five thousand civilians were injured since the current unrest began on the ninth of July.
Demanding an immediate cessation of use of any form of force on protesters, the NC General Secretary said irresponsible and highly insensitive statements of Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti had further worsened the situation by emboldening the brutality of the response by the police and paramilitary forces on unarmed protesters. “This State Government, despite countless pleas, has allowed the continued use of pellet guns against protesters – which has led to the blinding of hundreds of young boys and girls. The Union Home Minister should have immediately banned the use of pellet guns after his visit to the Valley but alas it seems like the Central Government is sadistically enjoying the misery and grief in Kashmir”, the NC General Secretary added while talking to reporters.
“This past Friday more than seven hundred civilians sustained injuries in one single day alone and this is unprecedented even in the worst days of armed turmoil in the Valley since 1989. Despite the situation worsening with every passing day and despite the political status-quo getting further prolonged, the Central Government deliberately misled the Supreme Court by claiming the situation in the Valley was improving. New Delhi cannot wish this unrest away nor can it brush the political issue or the political sentiment under the carpet”, Ali Mohammad Sagar added.
The NC General Secretary also condemned the unabated spate of arrests across the Valley as well as harassment of locals by Police and paramilitary forces in different parts of the State. “The same PDP which tried to market amnesty for the youth for its political gains is now leaving no stone unturned to drag thousands of young boys into jail. Where is Mehbooba Mufti’s conscience today? Where are her crocodile tears? The repression of youth will be counterproductive and will further alienate them away from the system towards dissent and disillusionment”, Sagar stated while addressing reporters.
