Though the government and the BJP have tried to downplay it, the fact is that the Kashmir Valley has been cut off from the rest of the country by the agitators in Jammu
By Bashir Manzar
Nearly 27 people dead in three days, hundreds injured in the Kashmir Valley. This time not for or against the diversion of land to the Amarnath Shrine Trust, but against the economic strangulation of Kashmir Valley by Jammu agitators who have been frequently disrupting supplies coming to Kashmir via the Jammu-Srinagar national highway since the last week of June.
This 300-km stretch is the only surface link between the Valley and the rest of the country. Disruption of traffic means impeding supplies to Kashmir and the ferrying of fruit from Kashmir to the mandis of Delhi.
Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) went on fast unto death against the economic blockade on August 5 and People’s Conference chairman Sajjad Lone described it as ‘war against Kashmiris.’
And in the wake of the economic blockade, the urgency of looking for alternative routes for at least exporting the fruit that may rot otherwise, started gaining momentum. And what is the alternative – the only other surface link that connects Srinagar with Muzaffarabad, the capital city of Pakistan administered Kashmir (PaK).
The All Valley Fruit Growers and Dealers Association held a meeting in Sopore Fruit Mandi on August 6, wherein it was decided to march with fruit laden trucks towards.
Alleging that around 2000 fruit-laden trucks were already stranded on the national highway between Srinagar and Delhi at various points, fruit-growers and traders said that the fruit was rotting as these trucks were not being allowed to move toward their destinations owing to the economic blockade of Kashmir “enforced by Hindu communalists”.
The fruit growers joined by the High Court Bar Association, besides different trade bodies, decided to march to Muzaffara-bad on August 11.
“The assurances of Divisional Commissioner and Governor have proved false, as drivers and trucks carrying fruits were continuously being attacked,” said Fruit Growers and Dealers Association general secretary Ghulam Rasool.
President of the Sopore Fruit Mandi, Haji Bashir Ahmed Beigh said that scores of vehicles have been looted in Madhavpur Punjab as now rioters were attacking them outside the state as well.
How could the politicians remain mute spectators? Hurriyat factions, led by Syed Ali Geelani and Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, supported the ‘Muzaffarabad March’ of fruit growers and so did the mainstream Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Tensions were brewing; the tempo was building up; the economic blockade had unnerved Kashmiris and all eyes were on August 11.
People were expecting that the government would impose strict curfew at least in Sopore, the apple town in North Kashmir, from where the march was to begin. Several separatist leaders and fruit growers’ association people were put under arrest, but curfew was not imposed. (Why? The administration has no answers.)
On the morning of August 11, people started emerging on Sopore streets; the crowd swelled to nearly 30,000 and started marching towards Srinagar-Muzaffarabad highway. As the crowd, led by Hurriyat leaders, Shabir Shah and Sheikh Aziz, marched on the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road, thousands joined it. At Baramulla, it was already a crowd of nearly one lakh people (though officials put the figure at 60,000).
The march was stopped at Chahal, some 20 km from Baramulla by the Army, CRPF and police. They opened fire, killing three persons on the spot and critically wounding Sheikh Aziz, who later succumbed to injuries at a Srinagar hospital.
The marchers were chased out but the damage was done. Sheikh Aziz’s killing sparked protests all over the Valley and the government had to impose curfew in all ten districts of the Valley, only to be defied by angry mobs.
Protestors turned violent, burnt police vehicles; demolished security bunkers; attacked police and paramilitary with rocks and in return were fired upon. Nearly 23 deaths have been reported so far from different parts of the world.
While the situation continues to remain tense in the entire Valley, the demand of opening of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road for trade is gaining momentum. This road was opened on 7 April 2005 following the Indo-Pak peace process. Interestingly, the road opening then was not welcomed by the separatist leaders and militants who thought it was ‘an attempt to dilute the Kashmir issue.’
However, things have taken a strange turn now and even hardliner leaders like Syed Ali Geelani are demanding opening of cross-LoC trade.
In a joint statement issued on August 13, Geelani and Mirwaiz have demanded immediate opening of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road for unrestricted movement of people and trade so that Kashmiris can import basic necessities for their survival and export their perishable fruit.
More interesting is the statement of Hizbul Mujahideen. The outfit’s spokesman, Junaidul Haq, in a statement issued on August 13, asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take steps for opening the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road for trade.
He asked the Prime Minister to discuss the start of truck service on Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road with Pthe akistan government so that Kashmiris can export and import fruit and other essentials safely.
The seeds of this crisis were sown on June 21 when, as an agitation against the transfer of land to Amarnath Shrine Board was going on in Kashmir, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) threatened to enforce economic blockade against the Kashmir Valley.
BJP state unit chief Ashok Khajuria, addressing a press conference at Jammu, said: “The people of Jammu would go in for economic blockade to the Valley in case the PDP and separatists give a bandh call in Kashmir against Shrine Board …”
The message was well received by concerned elements, who started disrupting trucks on the Jammu-Srinagar highway. Several truck drivers were beaten and their trucks damaged.
On July 27, the Amarnath Yatra Sangrash Simiti formally announced blockade of supplies to Kashmir Valley.
Addressing a press conference in Jammu, Samiti convener Advocate Leela Karan Sharma said that the Samiti has decided to block the supply line to Kashmir Valley from Lakhanpur during daytime. “During night the supply would be allowed. The Samiti will not be responsible for any incident during the night,” he said.
The Jammu and Kashmir Oil Tankers Association extended full support to the Samiti and stopped the supply of petrol and diesel to Kashmir Valley.
The Association president, Anan Sharma, said this would continue until July 31.
It took the government weeks to realise the gravity of the issue and hand over the national highway to the Army. By then, the Valley was running short of all essentials, including medicines.
As the Valley gets almost everything from outside, from vegetable to consumer goods, from drinking water to mutton and poultry, the impact of the economic blockade was very visible. July-August being the peak wedding season in the Valley, hundreds of wedding ceremonies were cancelled.
The government claims the highway is open and trucks with supplies are moving to and fro comfortably. However, the government figures themselves point towards the trouble.
Prior to the agitation, more than one thousand trucks, from each side, used to ply on this highway and now, as per figures supplied by the government, the numbers don’t exceed 500 from both sides.
The very fact that trucks are escorted by the Army and carry labels saying ‘On Army Duty’ indicates how serious is the economic blockade which the government and BJP are trying to downplay. Yet BJP leaders describe the reports as a rumour spread by ISI and its agents.