Open letter from a Kashmiri to conflict entrepreneurs disguised as human rights activists [read more]

Dear "Forum For Human Rights",

Greetings of the day.

Hope this finds you in the best of your moods and spirits. It was great to know and catch up with you the other day. I have gone through your report and here's my humble piece of feedback on it as promised;

On the page vii of the 'Executive Summary' of the report, you have made a mention about the precondition of the restoration of statehood by the Union Government and the awkward position of the regional parties vis-à-vis contesting polls, which could render their pending challenges 'infructuous' in the Hon'ble Court and that the "human right abuses" will continue unabated. You have also made a mention of the pertinent successive SC judgements in this context on page 8 of Chapter 1. My basic question at this juncture and in this context is how does one ensure the purity, free and fair character of the whole electoral process? To my little understanding, it all starts with containing the globally reckoned nuisance of terror, its ecosystem and the element of competitive secessionism by the mainstream political parties in the backdrop of Kashmir. The voter has to wear the sense of basic security and fearlessness whilst exercising the franchise.

The electoral process has to thrive on the fundamentals of basic governance and not on some plank of 'secessionism'. Now when we talk of human rights abuses, it's this vulnerable, unarmed and non-combatant voter whose rights have been and are being abused by the terrorists and their supportive milieu by virtue of threats and intimidation. To quote the latest instance, while writing this I am yet to come to the terms with the cold-blooded murder of a couple at Anantnag yesterday for the plain sin of possessing a political ideology and allegiance.

Again, on page vii of 'Executive Summary', when you say "second anniversary of the military lockdown" and prohibition of public assembly u/s 144 of CrPC 1973, I have brought this to your notice in my meeting and am once again saying this authority that the declared curfew for prevention of the loss to life and limb of the people by the government post August 5, 2019 did not last beyond a week or so. There were reasonable and tailored restrictions in place for containing street violence in pre-identified trouble pockets (of which we have been victims in 2008, 2009, 2010 & 2016) for a considerable period, but that again came to be necessary because some "leaders" in the mad race of competitive separatism effective the year 2002 and more so post 2016 had ended up annexing the 'dignity component' to an article of the Constitution. In the month of October 2020 then, the 51.7% voter turnout churning 278 DDC members, 20 Chairpersons and Vice-Chairpersons pin pricks your argument on "prohibition of public assembly" and "right to regular, free and fair elections".

Elections to BDC's were held for the first time in the history of J&K with a voter turnout of 98.3%, electing 276 chairpersons. This historic turnout very well surpassed the turnout in the last two elections – Parliament & Panchayats in the year 2018. 27 functions were then transferred as per 73rd amendment of the Constitution. Nearly 1727.50 Crores devolved – MGNREGA, 14th FC, Mid-day meals, ICDS were also transferred.

When you talk of "vigilantism against government employees", it's not vigilantism against a particular sect or section of people. It's the due vigil against those people who are drawing their monthly remuneration out of the tax-payers money whilst acting as beacons of terror and radical milieu, sanctifying acts of terror thereby driving young children into a state of conflict with forces on the streets and eventually pushing to create what you have termed as "child fighters". Apropos the "media gag on healthcare workers", as a responsible healthcare worker, I can authoritatively tell you this that the idea was to contain the spread of panic in population by a certain group of people who would have wanted to ride on the misfortune of people, spread misinformation and ultimately engineer the public disaffection and possibly a spell of street violence. We didn't loose a single soul for the want of medical treatment or oxygen if I may mention it here.

Yes, schools did function barely for 250 days between August 2019 and July 2021. What is it that you attribute this closure to? A lockdown because of the waves of pandemic or a "two year plus long military lockdown", which is incidentally one of the lies being peddled by our western neighbor globally.

There is a huge distinction between being intimidated for journalistic work and being booked under relevant sections as an individual for the commission of an offence. Individual preoccupation just cannot become a façade for immunity against law of the land. Can it? We perhaps need to look at this with a little bit of finer sense of compartmentalization. The directive of not venturing to the encounter sites dates back to the year 2018, when we almost lost a journalist to an unexploded bomb at the site, but for the presence of mind shown by a paramilitary trooper. Conflict reporting is one and then generating a material for inimical powers that be for infusing life in their propaganda machinery is different. We do understand the distinction.

This and there are hosts of other disagreements that I hereby register with you regarding the report. I will also be contesting this in the public domain if need be. Please find time to talk to a wider range and variety of people the next time you visit Kashmir.

I wish you both good health.

The author, Dr. Suneem Khan, is a medical doctor based out of Kashmir. Views expressed are author's own and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of the website or its affiliates.