Acid attack on a girl in Srinagar is a heinous crimes that deserves stringent action against the culprits. While the act has brought to light the failures in social policing but it also shows that moral standards have come down to a new low in Kashmir. While irrefutable fact is that women used to move freely even in the midnight hours in Kashmir but now young girls move with fear to schools and coaching centres in day time due to increasing waywardness of the youth in Kashmir. The issue is more a parental failure and very less a failure of social policing. Such incidents occurring in Kashmir only but not anywhere else in Kashmir indicate that some anti-social are hell bent upon to defame the rich social fabric of Kashmir and it more for the civil society and religious leaders to wake from deep slumber to combat the growing waywardness among youth in Kashmir. Law enforcement always triggers allegations of harassment but course correction by civil society groups and religious leaders has never ever attracted any allegation against them from any quarter. Undeniable fact is that waywardness of the youth is being witnessed helplessly by both the uniformed men and the people moving on streets near the coaching centers in Srinagar and majority of valley towns. Though police during summer months trap young students on charges of eve teasing and sends them to police lock ups, but they are allowed to go scot free later. The time when immoral trafficking is seen taking place under broad day light near coaching centers on the ever busy New Airport Road Srinagar and commercial hubs of other towns in Kashmir valley, the sleuths of Kashmir police shut eyes partly to let the coaching centers become the centers of immoral trafficking. Though some civil society groups had woke up from deep slumber to call for restrictions on waywardness in schools and colleges many times in recent years, but their cries were lost in the din for the reasons that law enforcement authorities are reluctant to supplement the efforts of civil society groups in spreading moral awareness campaign across the length and breadth of Kashmir.
The time has come for both the civil society groups and law enforcement authorities to work together for spreading the moral awareness campaign across the length and breadth of Kashmir valley. The sooner they join hands to revive the process of moral education in schools and colleges, the better it will be for the future of the youth of Kashmir. Any delay on this count may prove disastrous for the future of the society in Kashmir valley and as what matters is an exemplary punishment to the culprits of acid attack which is the only way to stop the occurrence and re-occurrence of such highly condemnable acts in future.
Though the civil society and the law enforcement authorities need to work together to curb waywardness through social awareness campaign in Kashmir valley, but it is very unfortunate that people tend to settle scores than addressing the issues of public concern like waywardness in Kashmir valley. Had both the civil society and law enforcement authorities been serious and sensitive over the growing waywardness in Kashmir, they would have joined hands to morally educate the youth to let them know the consequences of waywardness in future. The moral education started by some civil society groups few years back has taken a back seat in Kashmir valley and the growing waywardness has made it imperative for both the civil society groups and law enforcement authorities to join hands for reviving the process of moral education in schools and colleges immediately after reopening of unprecedented one year lockdown in March this year. The time has come for both the civil society groups and law enforcement authorities to work together for spreading the moral awareness campaign across the length and breadth of Kashmir valley. The sooner they join hands to revive the process of moral education in schools and colleges, the better it will be for the future of the youth of Kashmir. Any delay on this count may prove disastrous for the future of the society in Kashmir valley and as what matters is an exemplary punishment to the culprits of acid attack which is the only way to stop the occurrence and re-occurrence of such highly condemnable acts in future.
