Letter to The Editor:
Today, I take the liberty of writing this letter, on behalf of the rest of Kashmir (read as Indian Occupied Kashmir), to all of the Pakistani brothers, who are standing with Kashmiris.
I am a Kashmiri and it is unfortunate that, even after everything that is going on in Kashmir, we, Kashmiri students studying and living in Indian university campuses are not able go back to our motherland. We are not even able to contact our family, friends or relatives and this is a very alarming situation for us.
Most of us are short of money because no transaction from Valley is possible and we cannot go back due to fear of arrests and being caged like people are in Valley. Thanks to our friends in university who are looking after ourselves irrespective of their religious backgrounds. My friends stopped to me try to reach my family believing that I would never come back again to them.
Our situation is beyond terrified, knowing that our families are going through a genocide, curfew, imprisonments, confinements, atrocities, killings and we cannot do anything for them but those who are doing this to Kashmir should know that, A Kashmiri who do not holds a stone in hand, keeps the stone in his heart.
I wish I could go upfront and ask the fascist Modi-led BJP Government that if this isn’t brutal, than what is? We are in a state of shock.
I think this dream of being free, having civil rights including right to safety and life, freedom of expression and assembly, or all of the necessary human needs are just becoming a fantasy. I am all out of hope but when I see our Pakistani brothers standing with us and fighting for our rights, it really brings up some hope.
What the Indian government was doing in the past with Kashmir, it was nothing new for us because we have been going through chaos for the past 71 years but now they have gone off limits. We have even lost the right to go back home.
The biggest problem that our youth is facing is frustration and this situation is mentally eating up our youth slowly and gradually. Even after all of this we stand tall to face the challenges of the times with unshakable courage and youthful confidence.
We are living a life worse than slavery. We cannot visit or stay for long in our motherland. We lost our culture. We lost good friends, relatives. Our people were very less and is reducing further.
Sir, I want you to let our voice be heard, through your newspaper and social media, different news platforms or by any different means, across the nation. What we want is to be free just like any other nation.
Name withheld
