Calcutta: Four-time former MLA Mohd Yousuf Tarigami (73), speaking on the condition of the state and current situation of Kashmiris said the state was ‘Paradise on Earth’ but is no longer the same.
“Paradise on Earth is getting lost. There is still something left to salvage. The people of Kashmir had rejected (Muhammad Ali) Jinnah to embrace (Mahatma) Gandhi and join the secular Indian mainstream. It’s time that the people, not just Kashmiris, protest the unconstitutional coup that is nothing less than a big terrorist act vis-a-vis the Constitution,” he said speaking in an interview with the Telegraph in a small hotel room in central Calcutta on a chilly January evening.
It was only after the Apex Court’s order, Tarigami had in September become the first prominent politician to step out of the Valley since the Centre revoked Jammu and Kashmir’s special status on August 5 last year, imposing a security clampdown and communication blockade in the state.
“I ask Mr. Amit Shah, if everything is normal why are you not holding the polls despite all political streams pleading with the Government of India and the Election Commission?” the former MLA asked.
“Mr. Home Minister, when everything is normal why not release leaders (who) you feel are powerless? Mr. Home Minister, we are not asking for big things. We want our students to access scholarship schemes, fill NET (National Eligibility Test) forms, get the advantage of government-run schemes.
“Whether it is the MGNREGA or health schemes, I dare you, home minister, to put it before the country how many Kashmiris have availed of these schemes in the months since the August 5 lockdown? When everything is normal, why don’t you put an end to the lockdown and restore communication networks?
“Mr. Shah, these are non-secessionist demands of my countrymen and well within the provisions of the Constitution. You are feeding the population with all sorts of distorted facts. Stop it,” he said.
The former politician further added: “They are changing legislation to arm the authorities and disarm the population. The situation in Kashmir can only be salvaged by restoring Article 370 and Article 35A. They have been unconstitutionally snatched from us.”
He expressed huge disappointment at the state of Kashmiri people and how the nation paid them for choosing Mahatma Gandhi over Mohammed Jinnah.
“I must be frank with my countrymen that I am slightly disappointed. Slightly because I still have hope that if not yesterday, today or tomorrow, appropriate responses will emerge,” he said.
Suggesting that India should at least stand up for Kashmir, he said any more delay could prove costly since the apparent lull in the Valley could be the prelude to an ominous storm.
Cautioning fellow citizens, he said: “Don’t see Kashmir as an isolated incident. If we do that, we will commit a great mistake. The pain of Kashmir is severe but over a period of time, other areas of the country will undergo the same torment if the people do not rise to resist it. Before it is too late, we must join hands against the assault on the Constitution to change its basic structure. That is why I see hope in the ongoing student protests.
“Though the crisis of Kashmir is graver, the attacks on protesting students in Delhi and anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act protesters in Uttar Pradesh are the BJP’s way of furthering the agenda of constitutional subversion, (and) terrorizing the people. If Kashmir is an extreme case, elsewhere they are policing the population to send the message that they are no more ready to listen to voices of dissent.”
Tarigami warning the government against people’s anger said: “Don’t muzzle protests. Anger is anger. You don’t know when it will burst (out).…”
When asked why the Valley did not see many protests after Central Government revoked the special status on August 5, Tarigami said: “All the channels for people to let out their anger have been forcibly shut. When the leaders have been detained and put under house arrest, the entire population has been humiliated into silence, and the media turned into gazettes of the government, what do you expect?
“There has been a huge, organized crackdown politically, constitutionally and administratively. People are silent but their silence should not be misunderstood as acceptance. I’m worried about this silence. If this situation continues, it will have a disastrous impact. My worry is that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Shah are refusing to see (the portents).”