Srinagar: Proclaiming democracy on one hand and using police might to stop peaceful gatherings and tribute assemblies on the other hand are two contradictory things. United India During its struggle for freedom from British occupation witnessed only one Jalianwala Bagh massacre but Kashmiris have witnessed dozens of such massacres carried out by Indian occupational forces from 1990 till today. 21st January 1990, is a historical day when Kashmiris resisted Indian bullets but refused to budge before tyranny and falsehood. This was stated by the joint resistance leadership comprising of Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Muhammad Umar Farooq and incarcerated Muhammad Yasin Malik while recalling the sacrifices of martyrs who laid down their lives on 21st January 1990. Despite heavy police restrictions, curfew in the whole area, arrest spree and other oppressive measures by the state, JRL leaders and activists managed to gather at Basant Bagh and held a memorial meeting near the site of 21st January 1990 massacre at Basanat Bagh Gaw-Kadal.
It is worth to mention that to foil today’s peaceful program, Police kept JRL leaders Syed Ali Shah Geelani under house arrest while as police today morning also raided the residence of Muhammad Yasin Malik and arrested him immediately. He has been lodged at police station Kothi-bagh. Police have also arrested Hurriyat leaders Bilal Ahmad Sideeqi, Hilal Ahmad Waar and many others.
The call for today’s program was given by the joint resistance leadership and besides leaders and activists from Joint resistance leadership including advocate Bashir Ahmad ,Ghulam Nabi Zaki, Muhammad Rafiq Shah Owaisi, Showkat Ahmad Bakhshi, Engineer Ghulam Rasool Dar Eidhi ,Khawaja Firdous, Mukhtar Ahmad Sofi, Noor Muhammad Kalwal, Muhammad Yasin Butt, Sheikh Abdul Rashid, Abdul Rashid Untoo, Muhammad Maqbool Ganaie, Rameez Raja, Molvi Ashraf, Muhammad Sideeq Shah, Yasmin Raja, Imtiyaz Haider, Imtiyaz Ahmad Shah, Abdul Majid Wani, Imran Ahmad, Imtiyaz Ahmad Shah, Mushtaq Khan, Ashraf bin Salam, Professor Javed, Abdul Rashid Lone and many others including senior resistance leader Shabir Ahmad Dar were also present on the occasion. Besides resistance leaders and activists, people from different walks of life and admirers of selfless martyrs participated in today’s program. The memorial program which was held despite stringent curfew, restrictions, barricades, spree of arrests and nocturnal raids by police and forces, was addressed by advocate Bashir Ahmad Butt, Ghulam Nabi Zaki, Muhammad Rafiq Shah Owaisi who paid rich tributes to these martyrs.
It is also worth to mention police from last evening laid a tight siege around whole Lal Chowk and adjacent areas, erected barricades, imposed curfew and restrictions in and around Gawkadal, Nai-Sadak, Basant-Bagh, Maisuma, Budshah Chowk, Burbarshah, Chotabazar, Guru Bazar and other adjacent areas. Dozens of political activists and youth were either arrested by police in nocturnal raids or raided by police from these areas. Even the martyrs’ memorial at Basant Bagh had been sealed off by razor wire and other barricades. Stringent curfew and restrictions were such that no one including women, children and sick were allowed to move in or out the area but despite all these ruthless measures, leaders from the Joint resistance leadership and admirers of managed to reach and gather near the martyrs memorial at Basant- Bagh and held a peaceful protest program.
Meanwhile recalling the gallantry sacrifices rendered by selfless martyrs and also the oppression unleashed by Indian state to suppress Kashmiri Freedom struggle, Joint resistance leadership comprising of Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Muhammad Umar Farooq and Muhammad Yasin Malik have said that combined India throughout its 200 year long freedom struggle saw only one Jalyanwala Massacre but a comparatively tiny nation called Kashmir has seen scores of such Jalyanwala massacres carried on by so-called biggest democracy called India. JRL said 21st January is an important day of Kashmirs 5000 year old history. On this day thousands of unarmed people came out of their houses to demand freedom and right to self determination and protested against the crackdown of Indian forces that had been started from Guru-Bazar, Kani-Kadal, Chota-Bazar .These peaceful people were showered with bullets by Indian forces and police killing more than fifty of them on spot and injuring hundreds of others. JRL said that in 1990 Indian state deployed Jag-Mohan in Jammu Kashmir with a purpose to kill, beat and humiliate Kashmiris and soon after his arrival in Kashmir he started his criminal campaign from Gaw-kadal massacre that was followed by more massacres at Handwara, Kupwara, Hawal Srinagar, Sopore, Sailan Poonch, Zakura, By-pass Batamaloo, Magarmal Bagh, Baderwah, Marmat Doda, and Bijebihara, Hazratbal, Gojwara, Mashali Mohalla, Khanyaar, Dalgate etc in coming days and years. JRL said that the sole aim of India was to terrorize people of Kashmir through these brutal massacres and put an end on their march towards freedom and right to self-determination but India failed in doing so in past and is bound to fail in future too. People of Jammu Kashmir will continued their march towards freedom with passion and zeal despite all these harsh measures and the day is not far when Kashmiris will also achieve their right of self-determination and tyrants will have to seek apology from those oppressed added JRL.