Kashmiris in Bengaluru anxious about the plight of relatives back home

Bengaluru: It has been 13 days of hopelessness and helplessness for Kashmiri students and professionals residing in the city. Whiel they are anxious about their parents and relatives back home, they also fear for this lives if they decide to speak up.

Some Kashmiri women even claim they now have to contend with taunts from locals like “now we can marry Kashmiri girls”.

Those who returned from Kashmir after the August 5 lockdown have harrowing stories to tell about life behind security clampdown and the ubiquitous concertina barbed wires.

Some have even brought pictures and unverified videos which they claim were of protests in the valley against revoking of Article 370. These pictures and videos are being circulated among Kashmiris.

Though they tried to share these with local media houses, they were reluctant to use them. “Koi hamara sun hi nahi raha hai. Aap do minute hamare baatein sun rahe hai eh badi baat hai.” (No one is listening to us. You (DC) are at least listening to our plight. This is a big thing for us) said a man from Kashmir, who is settled here.  

Zaara (name changed) who is pursuing Engineering in the city breaks down for not being able to speak to her mother.  

“It’s very difficult for me being far away from home and not able to contact my family. Mentally we are not able to do anything. We study and do regular things, but minds are somewhere else. We don’t even know where our parents are,” she said.

“We are in a dilemma whether we should travel to Kashmir or not. We don’t know what is the situation there. I had a flight ticket to go home during Eid, but cancelled it. I don’t know how I will inform my family that I want to come. And if I go there, I don’t know how I will travel from airport to my place,” she explained.

Taunts on marrying Kashmiri women
“The worst part is sometimes people pass comments that now we will marry your girls from Kashmir. There was no ban on marrying Kashmiri women,” said Sahil War, who runs a construction company in the city. Sahil’s family lives in Kupwara district in Kashmir.

‘Don’t care if I’m lynched’
Mansoor Bhat, an IT professional fears that if he speaks out about the condition of people in conflict ridden Kashmir, he may get death threats or even lynched. “I don’t care if I am threatened, chased, beaten. I would not stay silent. Today it is Kashmir, tomorrow it can happen to any region in the country,” he observed.
He lamented that many people around the country were jubilant when Article 370 was abrogated. They are not caring about our suffering, Mansoor said.

Sahil, however, maintains that Bengaluru and its people have been very nice. He said that on social media Kashmiris are branded anti-nationals for airing their opinions. “How dare you speak against the country is the common comment. But, it’s not about country. I was speaking about the bad decision of the government,” he said.

Mansoor Bhat maintained that some people always pass jingoistic comments on Kashmir. They actually want the land of Kashmir, not its people. All of them wanted to celebrate Eid in Kashmir but shelved their plans. They, however, feel that at least in Bengaluru they will not have to worry about taunts on Kashmiri women and can voice their opinions.   

Sahil described the government move to abrogate Article 370 as undemocratic.

“We being citizens of the country are now feeling like unwanted guests.”
Asra, an engineering student, said, “I have not spoken to my parents for almost 13-14 days. I remember my last call from my mother. I had no idea that from next day onwards there would be communication blockade. They have provided two numbers in District Commissioner’s office, but since there is curfew how will our families go there.  If we contact the deputy commissioner’s office, how will they get in touch with our parents,” Asra said.