Protests, both from the student community and the political parties, grew in Kashmir on Monday over the Aligarh Muslim University’s move to suspend at least three Kashmiri students and lodging of cases against them.
Scores of students at Kashmir University in Srinagar held a demonstration on campus. “We have assembled to register our protest over Mannan Wani’s killing and express solidarity with Kashmiri students charged by the police for offering funeral prayers,” said a protester. The Kashmiri students studying at AMU have refuted holding any funeral prayers but “a meeting for a former colleague”.
“No law and order problem was created by Kashmiri students at AMU and all the charges levelled against us are politically motivated and concocted,” said a student in Aligarh.
The students have appealed to J&K Governor Satya Pal Malik to get the suspension revoked and the cases withdrawn. Mr. Malik has raised the issue with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Peoples Democratic Party president and former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said pushing youth to the wall will be counterproductive. “The Centre must intervene and the AMU authorities must revoke the suspension. The State governments outside J&K should be sensitive to the situation and prevent further alienation.”
Ms. Mufti said it will be a travesty to punish them for “remembering their former colleague who was a victim of relentless violence in Kashmir”.
National Conference general secretary Ali Muhammad Sagar said “harassment and intimidation of Kashmiri students will inevitably make them susceptible to violent attacks across the country”.
Hate campaign
CPI(M) leader and Kulgam MLA M.Y. Tarigami said a hate campaign was unleashed on Kashmiri students outside the State and was patronised by communal forces.
“The AMU incident is not an isolated one against Kashmiris. Governor Malik must take up the issue of harassment of Kashmiri students with the State governments at the earliest. The BJP government at the Centre needs to initiate criminal proceedings against people found guilty of harassing Kashmiri students,” he said.