Deteriorating situation in Kashmir
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There have been reports of mass exodus of Hindu-Sikh-minority communities and other state workers due to the ongoing terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, which has been declared a Union Territory since August 5, 2019. In October alone, 33 people, including soldiers and civilians, were killed. This includes Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs. It is estimated that 800 families who were detained during the mass exodus of Pandits in the 1990s have begun to flee due to insecurity. It is estimated that over four lakh workers from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand are employed in Jammu and Kashmir. Hundreds of people have arrived at the Jammu and Udhampur railway stations in droves, ready to leave the state this time. Union Home Minister Amit Shah is scheduled to leave for Kashmir after consulting the Prime Minister as the situation in Kashmir is deteriorating. He is expected to reach the valley on the next 23rd and 24th. Although Lt Governor Majoj Sinha is trying to handle the situation by bolstering the military-police deployment, there is no chance for the wide-spread fear and insecurity to subside. Police in riot gear stormed a rally on Friday, removing more than 700 people by truck. According to officials, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Pakistan-based Hizbul Mujahideen are behind the TRF (The Resistance Front). The claim of TRF circulated through social earlier was that they are not an outfit that kill people based on religion and that they do co-operate with Indian authorities.
When in 2019 Article 370 of the Constitution was diluted by which Jammu-Kashmir lost its special status, and was deprived of the status that other states had, and the state was divided into three centrally administered territories, Modi had claimed that the step was aimed at ending terrorism and extremism in Kashmir and restoring normal life in the state. The country generally acquiesced in it. The apex court has not considered the petition filed against the move for two years. Earlier, when the 500 and 1000 currency notes were canceled, the main reason given for the cancellation was to block the funds received by the terrorists. But the incidence of terrorist attacks and lawlessness has not only not diminished, but even increased. Leaders of all political parties except the BJP were arrested; several activists were also detained. Although some were released on parole very slowly, people like former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti are still not free. Strict curbs on the Internet and social media continue. The military presence is stronger than ever.
None of this, however, has brought peace to Kashmir. Now, by law, all previous bans have been lifted and Hindus from outside Jammu and Kashmir are allowed by law to buy land and settle down after 15 years. Locals see this as a planned move to reduce the majority of Kashmiri Muslims. The pandits, who have returned, have been given the right to repurchase the property they had sold for a distress price, raising their concerns among Kashmiri Muslims about the central government's intentions. There is a strong opinion that all this is creating a favorable environment for the emergence of terrorist groups like the TRF. It is getting clear each day that without handing power to the true representatives of Kashmiris through a free and fair election and granting Jammu-Kashmir full statehood, the sharpening crisis cannot find a solution. The issue that needs to be seriously pondered over is how long a section of the population who form an integral part of free India can be kept locked by imposing orders and denying human rights.
