Conflict

Highly educated, employed youth picking arms to express their sentiments is alarming, says KUTA

One of the militants killed in the Shopian gunfight was Dr.Mohammad Rafi Bhat, an assistant professor of Sociology department of the Kashmir University. He had gone ‘missing’ on Friday which had triggered protests in the varsity. On Sunday, he was killed along with top Hizb commander Saddam Padder in Shopian.

In wake of his death, the Kashmir University Teachers Association (KUTA) on Monday , in a statement said that it was alarming highly educated and employed youth are too resorting to guns for expressing their sentiments and seeking justice.

The statement added that youth were picking up arms due to “diminishing faith in the state and its political establishments”.

“This emphasizes the fact that Kashmir dispute is a political issue that needs political intervention and not an issue of unemployment or economic packages,” the statement pointed out.

Expressing grave concern over the worsening law and order situation in the state, KUTA demanded an immediate end to continuing bloodshed and civilian killings in the valley.

The spokesman called for “urgent political and diplomatic initiatives” to defuse the situation and to seek political resolution of Kashmir conundrum before the situation spirals completely out of control.

He called upon the state and central governments to stop viewing Kashmir through the prism of the law and order problem only and tackle it with heavy military might.

“The increasing trend of youth joining militancy is worrisome that needs to be handled politically rather than militarily.”

Calling for “sincere and meaningful” negotiations with all stakeholders for resolution of the issue, KUTA asked the government to put an end to “disproportionate and indiscriminate” use of firearms against unarmed civilians and to exercise restraint while dealing with furious civilians.

It has also condemned the covert attempts of certain political parties aimed at stoking fire in the valley and resorting to vote bank politics over civilian and militant deaths and termed such attempts as disastrous for the state, said the spokesman.

Reacting over the killing of Professor Bhat, former chief minister Omar Abdullah had said that his killing is an answer to those who claim that jobs is the solution to the violence and alienation in the valley.


In his last conversation with his family, Bhat told his father that he ‘was sorry if he had hurt them.’ 

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