Srinagar
Independent lawmaker and MLA Langate on Friday held a protest march in Handwara in solidarity with students of Aligarh Muslim University.
The spokesman said that addressing the gathering in main Chowk Handwara Er Rasheed appealed for an unconditional seize fire within Kashmir between government forces and the militant outfits. He said that the “oppressive measures” by Army, Police and other security agencies have yielded nothing except facilitating killings and increasing animosity between the masses and the government forces.
“New Delhi must accept that for whatsoever reasons, militants are enjoying huge popular support in every nook and corner of Kashmir. If they had been just “terrorists” people would never have risked their lives to save them during encounters. It is an established fact that killing militants has yielded nothing except increasing militancy. When government figures itself confirm that scores of young men have joined militant ranks during last few months and the process is still continuing, what is the fun of fuelling the fire and making self-centered interpretations.”
The fact is that whatsoever is happening in Kashmir has a history behind it. Rasheed added that a seize fire for few months from all sides can create a way for good sense to prevail and if the leadership of both militants and the government forces realize that they can never win against each other, the political leadership including all stakeholders will be able to realize the necessity of resolving Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN resolutions.
Rasheed also expressed solidarity with the protesting Aligarh Muslim University Students and said that making so much of hue and cry over a portrait of Mohammad Ali Jinnah carries no meaning and has no logic. He said “Whether it is Jinnah, Gandhi, Nelson Mandela or someone of their stature, they have to be respected everywhere cutting across political, religious and regional affiliations. One has a reason to differ with the politics of Jinnah but his struggle in ending British Rule from the sub-continent can never ever be undermined.
He said that let those opposing Jinnah’s Portrait in AMU explain how PM Modi served Obama in Jinnah house. They need to answer why should by their logic Nehru’s and Gandhi’s photos be displayed in J&K. Er Rasheed appealed Indian Muslims to fight for preserving their heritage and the institutions, otherwise, they would be rendered like third-class citizens in coming times.
