By Ameer Tarin Dated: January 16, 2022
The two Gogois from Assam, the erstwhile chief justice of Indian Supreme court Mr Rajan Gogoi and Indian army’s Major Leetul Gogoi played havoc with Muslims of India and Kashmir. The former awarded Babri Mosque to Hindus on the plea that majority community Hindus’ sentiments superseded any documentary or historical evidence of ownership and the latter played with the lives of hundreds of innocent Kashmiris to derive sadistic pleasure.
Utpal Kumar, in his article “Why Kashmir belongs to India and not Muftis and Abdullahs” (Firstpost.com Jan 02, 2022) for once got it half–right as Kashmir does not belong to any political mafia who helped India for the last seventy four years to fraudulently maintain grip on Kashmir to hoodwink the international community. The political mafia Abdullahs, Bakshis, Muftis and peripheries did serve India well only to be dumped once the military hold on the land was fully established.
Kumar missed to mention that Article 370 or 35A were the artifice of Nehruvian era to put seal on the purported accession mischief. The ownership of Kashmiriat’ now becomes a question mark for Kumar as political somersaults become convenient and handy to distort Kashmiri culture, ethos and history. Up till recent times National Conference was a darling political entity serving Indian masters. Maqbool Sherwani a staunch National Conference associate regarded as a swashbuckling and dynamic leader for playing a devious role was opposed to freedom fighters fighting invading Indian army. Sherwani, a Kashmiri Jai Chand was punished for betrayal and deceit.
Kumar further basis his concoctions on legends, mantras and spiritual-cum-intellectual mythical aura, and attempts to establish Kashmir’s ownership using the stories based on Hindu mythology, having no substance or factuality. Kashmir is beautiful and the world does not need some Kalidas or Kalhana to reveal the secret. The fantastic imaginary narrative gives a clear idea of the bankruptcy of the mind.
Kumar writes “the valley was originally a lake which was created after a part of Sati’s (Sati, a Hindu tradition wherein a widow would throw herself on her husband’s pyre and burn to death) dead body fell in Kashmir during Shiva’s cataclysmic dance creating the Satisar Lake. The places where other body parts fell came to be known as Shakthi Peethas. One day a great sage called Kashyap arrived and drained the water and thus emerged a beautiful valley out of the lake.”
In order to create confusion, Kumar narrates another legendary tale saying “When Shankara arrived in Srinagar he ate raw food as he failed to make fire, quoting ‘greatest Hindu thinker’ Adi Shankaracharya, a Kashmiri girl came to their help. The girl, while chanting the mantra, rubbed two pieces of wood and emerging spark due to friction lighted the fire. The wood, the girl explained, is Brahman and the fire from it is shakti, the power inherent in Brahman.” Kumar tries to establish that Kashmiri Hindu girls in those times were emancipated, moving freely in society and were very well learned.
Reverend Tyndale Biscoe, in his autobiography, mentions that Colonel Duni Chand, chief medical officer in Kashmir, asked me if I would like to see the prison. So one morning he called for me, and took me in his dog-cart to the prison where at that time were 117 prisoners, 97 of whom were Mohammedans, being punished for killing cows. It is difficult for anyone who does not know the manners and customs of Brahman priests to understand fully what it means to be attacked by this class of super religious fanatics.
Kumar is pained to see the plight of river Jehlum (prefers to call it Vitasta) turning into a sewer or felling of trees, melting icy slopes of Gulmarg, Sonamarg or Pahalgam now strewn with litter, filth, garbage and human excreta. Kumar feels shy of revealing the fact that multitudes of Hindutva crowds, all of a sudden, from India barge into Kashmir to browbeat and intimidate Kashmiri populace, creating environmental hazards. Needless to mention that hundreds of returning empty army trucks transport illegally felled trees and anything of value to India. This loot and plunder has continued for decades.
Also mentioned is that in Baramulla Kashmir; Indian army pays Maqbool Sherwani tribute on October 27 celebrated as ‘infantry day’. Kashmiris, however, chant, Kumar says, ‘Maqbool Sherwaniun beyol khodayan gole’ (Maqbool Sherwani’s seed, May God destroy). Kumar’s mention of Maqbool Sherwani killed on November 07, 1947 adds a secular flavour without telling the reader that Sherwani was killed for betraying his own people as this is true with all Jai Chands, Mir Sadiqs or Mir Jaffars of India. Sherwani is buried in the graveyard in secure environs of Indian army cantonment area but definitely not in the precincts of JUMMA (Jamia) Masjid.
The political fraud played by Gandhi, Nehru and Patel paid dividends initially by pitting Abdullah against Maharaja Hari Singh to gain popular but naive Abdullahs’ support. It helped India keep Muslim population quiet and sedated. Meanwhile, the fallen Maharaja Patiala’s forces were already on the ground in Srinagar to secure the only airport in Kashmir. The devious Indian military action sent alarm bells in the freedom loving quarters of Kashmir.
The two Kashmiri origin retired British-Indian army officers Major Khurshid Anwar and Akbar Khan swung into action and hurriedly called a meeting of patriotic forces to stop Indian aggression and these forces were joined by freedom fighters from Poonch, Rajouri and other Muslim population areas of Jammu. By this time Indian forces had already landed at the Srinagar airport to join Patiala forces.
The small number of freedom fighters was no match to the regular Indian army. The Governor General of Pakistan Mr M A Jinnah was hesitant in ordering his armed forces to retaliate this brazen breach of trust by India. Pakistan’s army Chief Douglas David Gracey refused to comply with Governor General’s orders to march towards Kashmir as Gen Gracey preferred to carry out orders issued only by Governor General of India Lord Mountbatten. That was very unfortunate.
The patience with Pakistan running thin; the armed forces on their own initiative marched towards Kashmir and with full force stopped Indian army from advancing any further. The Indian army could only advance up to Uri Sector in Kashmir and Uri became the culminating point to declare a ceasefire. The two armies thenceforth became locked in a situation that came to be known as CEASEFIRE LINE. Out of the three wars fought between nuclear armed India and Pakistan, two were fought on Kashmir. The various United Nations Security Council Resolutions for a free and impartial plebiscite to be held in Kashmir are piled up in UN office chambers collecting dust.
The ‘Imperial concept of Edwin Lutyens’ architectural masterpieces is going to stay around till Mr Modi invents appropriate titles for future generations to remember these as Hindutva achievements. The fact remains that Moguls’ gave India everlasting architecture, the British robust infrastructure and Hindus the nuclear bomb, the design and brainchild of Dr Abdul Kalam.
Kamar concludes by saying that Kashmiri Pandits have survived despite all odds; the fresh air of life and invariable exuberance in the form of saviour Modi came to their rescue. The history tells us that 4% Pandits would have been thrown into the dustbin of history in 1947 when 600,000 Muslims were butchered by Hindu zealots backed by Hindu Dogra army beyond Udhampur. The Muslim majority province Jammu was turned into a minority in a matter of days. Muslim Kashmir maintained its Kashmiriat and the tradition of live and let live policy. Modi dispensation has not provided Pandits any hope but has become a source of misery and exploitation for them for all times to come. Yes, the very idea of India is definitely at stake.
Be peaceful, be courteous, obey the law, respect everyone, but if someone puts his hand on you, send him to cemetery …………..
KASHMIR 