Peoples Conference chairman Sajad Lone on Saturday warned that the “growing incidents of harassment” of Kashmiris in different parts of the country are eroding the very foundations of national integration and must be treated as a matter of national security rather than isolated law-and-order episodes.
Addressing a presser, Lone, who is also MLA Handwara, said he was compelled to speak after being approached by many families from his constituency who narrated disturbing experiences faced by their relatives outside Jammu and Kashmir.
“If in our own country we are subjected to this kind of behaviour, then one has to ask a painful question — what is our status in this country?” he said.
Lone underlined that migration for work is not a recent phenomenon.
“In districts like mine (Kupwara), at least 25 to 35 per cent of the male population has been living and working in other parts of India for the last fifty years. Many have purchased homes and built stable lives there,” he noted, adding that these people played a silent but decisive role in strengthening India’s internal cohesion.
“These people were ambassadors of integration,” Lone said. “They believed that their economic future lay within India and they returned carrying that belief. What even 10,000 or 20,000 soldiers could not achieve, these ordinary citizens were achieving every day.”
Describing recent official action as grossly inadequate, Lone cautioned against trivialising the issue, stating bluntly, “This is not a small matter. This is a matter of national security.”
Referring to the long-running conflict in Jammu and Kashmir since 1989, Lone said that alienating ordinary working Kashmiris would only deepen mistrust. “There has been conflict, there has been bloodshed and there have been graves. At such a time, dismantling bridges of integration is extremely dangerous,” he said.
Lone strongly urged the union government to act decisively against those targeting Kashmiris. Drawing a sharp comparison, he said, “If a Kashmiri child can be booked under UAPA merely for liking a Facebook post, what stops the government of India from booking these rogues and thugs under UAPA or PSA” He appealed directly to the Lieutenant Governor, saying, “Is PSA meant only for Kashmiri Muslims? Use it against those who are anti-integration and spreading hatred.”
In a stinging remark on misplaced nationalism, Lone said, “If they are so brave, send them to the China or Pakistan border. Showing aggression to a shawl seller who has gone out only to earn his livelihood is no bravery.”
Calling for urgent political intervention, Lone appealed to the Prime Minister and the Home Minister to view the issue through a national security lens. He also urged the Lieutenant Governor and the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir to engage directly with their counterparts in other states.
