Indian troops and dreaded agencies continued their violent cordon and search operations and house raids in different areas of the territory Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), subjecting the people to intimidation and harassment.
According to Kashmir Media Service (KMS), Indian troops, police and paramilitary personnel conducted search operations in different areas of Baramulla, Islamabad, Pulwama, Kulgam, Doda and Jammu districts and arrested dozens of people. The residents of several areas told the media that the troops barged into their houses, abused the inmates including women and children and vandalized the household goods.
The sleuths of India’s National Investigation Agency and State Investigation Agency along with paramilitary forces carried out raids at multiple places in Pulwama, Kulgam, Badgam and other districts and seized mobiles, laptops, computers and other belongings of the people. During the raids, the residences and shops of persons dealing with the selling of mobile phones and SIM cards were particularly targeted.
Meanwhile, All Parties Hurriyat Conference leader and United Resistance Forum Chairman, Bilal Ahmed Siddiqui, in a statement issued in Srinagar appealed to the international community to take cognizance of the Indian state terrorism in IIOJK and impress upon New Delhi to settle the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN resolutions and Kashmiris’ aspirations. Illegally detained APHC leader, Abdul Samad Inqilabi, in a message from Kot Bhalwal Jail of Jammu deplored that India is mercilessly killing innocent Kashmiri youth to suppress the ongoing Kashmir freedom movement.
National Conference leader, Hasnain Masoodi, in an interview in Srinagar said the Delimitation Commission constituted by Narendra Modi government to redraw assembly constituencies in IIOJK has disempowered the people of territory. He said the entire process of redrawing the assembly constituencies has been done to benefit the Bharatiya Janata Party. The Communist Party of India Marxist in a statement in New Delhi said recommendations of delimitation panel are clearly politically motivated and aimed at changing the demographic composition of the territory.
An Indian policeman was critically injured, today, after unknown gunmen fired upon him near Aiwa Bridge along Dr Ali Jan Road in Srinagar.
A US-based Hindu scholar Ashutosh Varshney, in a podcast discussion with noted Indian journalist, Sidharth Bhatia, warned that India is now entering the stage of anti-Muslim pogroms. Ashutosh Varshney, who teaches social sciences and political science at Brown University, was commenting about violence against Muslims, especially in those states that are ruled by the BJP. Varshney said, the Indian prime minister is keeping silent because he believes in this ideology whereas India is also not worried about western criticism because the calculation is that India is needed by the west.
On the other hand, voting in connection with Khalistan Referendum will be held Brescia city of Italy, tomorrow. A referendum for a separate Sikh homeland, mainly comprising the Indian state of Punjab, started from London on 31st October, last year, and so far tens of thousands of Sikhs have participated in the polling held in different cities of UK and other countries.
