Recently when the rumors broke out about the killing of 158 Indian soldiers by the hands of Chinese troops like any other Kashmiri I too was very excited and over- joyed. Undoubtedly, within no time the social media was flooded with the posts of Kashmiri people expressing mammoth joy. It’s true that whenever India faces defeat whether in cricket or any other activity, the defeat of the country brings joy and smile on the disgruntled and gruesome faces of the people of Kashmir. In other words, one can say that the loss of the India brings a huge relief to Kashmiri people and the obvious reason is that the history of the modern Kashmir is brimmed with humiliation, oppression, and suppression by the hands of Indian occupational forces.
As the joy about the killing of Indian forces was going on across Kashmir. It was 10 p.m. when I stepped towards my room to make my bed. I was in my deep thoughts; undoubtedly there was some sort of excitement inside, again and again hitting my mind. As I stepped on the bed I was trying to figure out the state prevailing inside me thus here I ended up with sailing in my imaginations and nightmares. Finally, I fell asleep and had a dream. “It was a war going on in every nook and corner of the Kashmir valley. The dead bodies were lying everywhere. The whole valley was drenched in blood, festering and yelling brutally. The sentiments were high and there were crosswords going on between Indian soldiers and the people of Kashmir. Almost every Indian soldier was killed one after the other, and the victory seemed very near. It took almost three months to end the war and vanish them all. The time to celebrate the victory came. Ahh! But it was never like that. As I started to shout and express my profound and prolonged emotions, the noise was too little; hands up in the joy were very few. I had thought to celebrate the Victory with my friends and folks but Alas! There were hardly any of them. They were lifeless and lying in the pool of blood. Yes, they were dead. There were only a few humans left. I was wrong while believing that only the men of the other side were killed during the long fight rather the blood of humans from both sides was floating in the streets of the valley”.
Suddenly, I woke up, my hands were trembling and shivering with fear and anxiety when I saw my own best friend were dead. I quickly drank a glass of water though I was drenched in cold sweat. Next morning, I was nervous and confused and my body temperature was very low. The excitement about to fight was gone. I talked with my friends and fellows about this gruesome dream and finally, we summed up that the wars only bring destruction, laxity and more violence. I firmly believe that if violent means from both sides would be stopped then there will be no more killings, confrontations and there will be no loss of any human being of the either side. So, we must not fight but think about peaceful initiatives and constructive steps that will give peace a chance. I at once decided to accept there should not be any rebellion against any system in order to avoid more killings. Even I started propagating the same. But, the confusion arose again because of the civilians killed near encounter sites in South Kashmir and in other parts of the valley.
“The conflict doesn’t differentiate between a businessman or an employee, a student or a teacher, an engineer or a doctor, unarmed rebel or an armed rebel, male or a female, young or old, it just consumes all” .
I was once again in deeps thought, re-imagining the ongoing conflict in my land. Following this, On the same day, I again had a dream. “People were busy in their respective works, happy with their families and living their lives peacefully. They offered prayers, celebrated festivals, loved each other and were helping each other. I went on in my thoughts where I came across through jackals living in their dens deep inside the valley. There were too many dens for them. The problem with these jackals was that they often come out from their dens and move towards the valley what happens every time they take one or more people from the valley with them. They are so furious; they can kill or hurt anyone anywhere at any time. The people of the valley continuously used to shout in order to get any kind of help which would save them from these jackals or keep these jackals away from them so that the rest of the valley could live comfortably and peacefully.I saw the days passing, watching and witnessing the same brutal cycle every now and then. These jackals entering almost every house here for their hunts and in every day in and out the precious human life getting demoted. I have seen my best friends and folks killed and eaten by these jackals who became ruthless, inhumane and disastrous towards the valley. They hunt for all humans. Yes, there were only jackals along with some foxes and wolves living in that valley while hunting together”.
I woke up in shiver, fear, agony and above all in confusion when I imagined myself as the first human being hunted by these jackals. I saw myself dead….I was dead…..“Isn’t it necessary to regain the lost space for a dignified human life, free from fear and sufferings?” I asked myself, once I was out of my dream.
Post Script: The prolonged Kashmir conflict have consumed tens and thousands of human lives, thousands were disappeared, hundreds lost their eye sight for rest of their life, thousands are behind bars and are booked under draconian laws like Public Safety Act. In nutshell, one can say that the life in Kashmir valley has been derailed, pulverized and strangulated by these inhuman jackals. To stop more bloodshed and human loss across Kashmir valley there is an immediate need for sincere political dialogue among the genuine stakeholders of this prolonged dispute. In conflict-hit territories, the tyrant doesn’t differentiate between a businessman or an employee, a student or a teacher, an engineer or a doctor, unarmed rebel or armed rebel, male or a female, young or old, it just consumes all.
———(The author a student at S S M College of Engineering & Tecjnology Parihaspora Srinagar regularly writes for the edit page of English Daily “The Kashmir Horizon”)
