Thaindian News

New Delhi, Feb 1 (IANS) Senior leaders from various political parties Tuesday demanded revocation of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act [AFSPA] in Jammu and Kashmir as well as more autonomy for its people in order to ease the tension in the valley.At a gathering addressed by leaders from Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), Telugu Desam Party (TDP), and Communist Party of India (CPI), among others, all agreed that dialogue was the only way forward in the Kashmir Valley and the intimidating presence of army over the years has proved disastrous for Kashmiri people.

“The successive governments which have governed the state have transformed it from heaven to hell over the years. There are also some people in the country who have pitted the Kashmiri Hindus against the Kashmiri Muslims,” said CPI general secretary A.B. Bardhan.

“The people of Kashmir are being tortured and AFSPA (which gives legal immunity to the armed forces) is being used on our own people and sadly nobody can question the army,” added Bardhan.

According to Prakash Karat, general secretary CPI-M, Kashmir has a history of denying democracy and autonomy to its people and the residents of the valley have been living in the fear of the armed forces for decades now.

“The government still thinks of Kashmir as a security problem. It does not trust the people living there and worse, threatening them with gun toting military. For many Kashmiris the image of India is the armed forces and its suppression,” said Karat.

“Kashmiris have always struggled for their rights and that is why those 111 young boys lost their lives in the recent police firing. A mother who knows that her boy might get shot in the firing still encourages him to pelt stones on the army. This is the level of anger in Kashmiris,” added Karat.

Agreed Ram Vilas Paswan, president (LJP), who opined that about five lakh Kashmiris are under severe depression because of the turbulence in the valley.

“If a youth dies in an accident in any part of India, buses are set on fire and roads are blocked but when another youth is shot dead by the army because of AFSPA, no one seems to have a problem with that,” Paswan said.

A resolution demanding immediate action to address the aspirations of the Kashmiri people as well as start a dialogue with all sections of the Kashmiri society was also passed in the meeting.