By TAWFEEQ IRSHAD MIR
Patriotism, said Samuel Johnson “is the last refuge of the scoundrel “to begin with let me outburst my emotional content that seeks my thinking and the power of analysing things empirically, what I believe is literally what other’s concede to, in evaluating the juggernaut knocked in Kashmir Valley. “Kashmir Valley is like a black hole whosoever dares to speak truth is eventually put to rest “I don’t need to exacerbate my arguments with facts and figures to prove my instinctual quote that I lamented above, but since for rational thinkers, I need to rectify it. While at a moment I am sitting, my mind in over excited state striking the resemblance with truth,”assassination of Shujaat Bukhari stands testimony to the fact that valley is gripped in constant uncertainty. Uncertainty of innumerable episodes that heralded the valley, the uncertainty of fear, the uncertainty of death, the uncertainty of hunger, the uncertainty of war.
Over the past few days, the speculations were so strong, exacerbating in a randomized fashion, the valley gripped in epilogue of fear, fear that was unknown, and let me tell you these unknown fears are more debilitating, more heartening, more lucid, and the worst part about it is the catalogue of repercussions associated with this unknown fear. It could be virgin experience living anywhere else, but for a common Kashmiri, it is a common experience. On 23rd of Feb morning, when I reached to college, waiting outside the classroom, the class was yet to commence, my counterparts began to assemble around a focal point, I mean, gas heater, to warm themselves, and the strange thing was a descending gloom hanging on their faces, they were exchanging fierce dialogues coupled with sensitivity and interest, I approached to them asked for the reason. I got rebuking reply “don’t you know anything, what kinda world you are living “they aroused my suspicion more profoundly, and I pleaded them to let me know in a clear way the course of your increased anxiety. One among them was ready with the reply, the first thing he said “article 35a has been eroded. He said it candidly, the other one said that, hundreds of Jamate_Islami leaders, separatist stalwarts have been holed up overnight. The plethora of varied information surfacing on social networking sites was aggravating to the fear quotient. As I was in Srinagar attending my college here, suddenly my phone started ringing, it was my mother. Hello, assalamu alikum, I started with. She replied with walikum salaam, all in a slurred speech, I sensed her fear encapsulated in her words, she was hurried with the words, son, please come back, the situation is worse. I assured her, it’s all safe, you need not to worry, and somehow I managed to convince her. Probably because, she is mother, and she cared. Likewise, this Kashmir Valley is mother to all those who belong to this region, and we care for it.
When the classes finished, I had to go to Kashmir university for some official work at administrative department, as I left, I could see people summoned by suspicion, the unknown suspicion, the signs and symptoms had already knocked the door, the deployment of additional troops, the notification to health department regarding covering up the essential facilities, the notification to ration stores, to remain vigil and open, and many more, all in sudden that captivated the minds of people, scrambling them with fear, anxiety. All in a sudden, a video surfaced on social media regarding scuffle between two forces that further aggravated the notion. The vacating spree, of villages close to borders, for a moment, it froze the consciousness of people, as if the war has begun.
The most strange thing, even the political heavy weights of mainstream were unknown of what was going on in valley, and why was happening so? I think it was a surprise to them just like it was a surprise to common Kashmiri, I must say these uncertainties are bitter, heart wrenching. They coagulate your brain, and renders you deficient of everything. The rumours ionised the environment with such magnitude that gripped the valley in a terrible psychotic syndrome. Attacking the conscience of people, inducing anxiety and fear in their minds is an advanced War technique. Assaulting the body, damages your physique, but setting the echoes of fear, ambulates your thinking and retrieving power. Maybe this is Kashmir, and everything is fair here.
The momentarily relief came, when j and K police came up with a statement, that such developments are going on to review the election situations scheduled this year, and more profoundly when Governor retrieved the same. The day passed, but the following night was a big challenge for Kashmiris, as most kept awake all through, the speculation were going from bad to worse. In-between all this, what surprised me the most that during days of chaos, the Internet is scrapped but there was not such move, that somehow managed to Unite the Kashmir in this period of fear.
I don’t know how many uncertainties are yet to prevail, but it reflected the soft attitude of people inhabiting this Himalayan region, they didn’t resorted to any untoward incident, didn’t assembled and provoked anything, they kept calm and quiet desperately waiting for peace to knock their resilience. Kashmir is not just a geography, it’s not limited by boundaries, it’s beyond borders, it’s beyond limits, and it’s an ideology, an ideology of love, of compassion, of sympathy.
(The writer is a Nursing students at G M C Srinagar. E-mail: tawfeeqirshad@gmail.com)
