Kashmir: Today
As of 2019, Jammu and Kashmir is the most militarized zone in the entire world, which means that the presence of armed forces is more than in conflict zones like Iraq, Afghanistan and Gaza. The Indian armed forces had landed in Kashmir on October 27th, 1947. This was in response to a request from the erstwhile ruler of Jammu and Kashmir, Maharaja Hari Singh. He sought India’s help in protecting his territory against tribal invasions from Pakistan. India agreed to help on the condition that Kashmir should accede to India. Following this, Maharaja Hari Singh signed the Instrument of Accession, joining the Dominion of India, but with conditions of greater Autonomy for Kashmir, and the promise of a future plebiscite.
The armed forces that were brought in for a specific purpose, have since permanently resided in the valley. Their numbers have increased exponentially, so much so, that according to a report published by Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS) in 2015, there is 1 Indian Soldier for every 10 Kashmiris in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The presence of armed forces has become more problematic by controversial provisions like Armed Forces Special Powers Act 1990 (AFSPA) and Public Safety Act (PSA). AFSPA was introduced as an emergency measure in the 1990 to curb the insurgency movement, however despite a considerable dip in militancy movement by 2000s, it has been in effect for over 30 years in the valley.
The Armed Forces Special Powers Act gives legal immunity to soldiers against prosecution which means soldiers can carry out military actions with minimum accountability. This has had horrific consequences for human rights situation in the valley. Since the 1990s, around 70,000 people are reported to have been killed, and 8000 people are said to have disappeared without any trace. Most of them are believed to have been buried in more than 6000 unmarked mass graves around Kashmir. There are reports of over 7000 custodial killings by the armed forces.
With drop in the militancy movement, street protests became a popular form of expressing public dissent and outrage among Kashmiris. However, the protest demonstrations have been met with disproportionate force, with troops killing hundreds of unarmed civilians for the last three decades. Protesting civilians are arbitrarily picked and booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA). The Public Safety Act is a preventive detention law that allows the state government to detain a person up to two years without a trial. There have been reports of mid-night raids, extreme torture and boys as young as nine years of age being picked up from the street and detained with arbitrary charges that are too vague. According to a report by Amnesty International, in a written reply to the Legislative Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir in January 2017, the then-Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti stated that from 2007 to 2016, over 2400 PSA detention orders were passed. According to information obtained through Right to Information (RTI) applications, over 1000 people were detained under the PSA between March 2016 and August 2017.
The grave human rights situation in the valley have contributed to an epidemic of mental health issues in the local population. According to a 2016 report from Doctors Without Borders, an adult Kashmiri witnesses, on an average, 7.7 traumatic events in their lifetime. Around 44% of the adult population suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Since the abrogation of Article 370 on 5th August 2019, around 38,000 additional troops have been moved to Jammu and Kashmir, and telecommunication blockade has been imposed in the valley. The internet shutdown has crossed 5 months. A temporary lull has overtaken the valley with silence sinking their voices deeper into the unknown!
Inquilab Series is a series of parchas (pamphlets) produced by a community of writers, academics, translators and creatives on Indian politics and popular resistance, owing to the crisis in the democratic fabric of the country. We aim to write on different issues that plague the nation in accessible language and eventually translate them into regional languages of India. Every pamphlet is free to use and circulate for the purposes of dissemination of information.
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