Ensure Kashmiri students’ safety outside the state: Tarigami to Centre

JAMMU: Senior CPI (M) leader M Y Tarigami Monday alleged that a hate campaign has been unleashed against Kashmiri students in the country and asked the Centre to take steps to ensure their safety outside the state.
He urged the Centre to initiate criminal proceedings against people found guilty of harassing Kashmiri students in different parts of the country and also sought the intervention of the state governor Satya Pal Malik to ensure safe and secure environment to Kashmiris outside the state.

“The harassment of Kashmiri students at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and in different colleges and educational institutions in Punjab at the behest of communal forces is unacceptable and must be condemned in strongest words as such incidents have serious implications, the CPI (M) leader said in a statement here.
Three Kashmiri students of AMU were booked on sedition charges for allegedly raising “anti-India” slogans and trying to hold a prayer meeting for Hizbul Mujahideen commander Manan Bashir Wani on October 12 (Friday).

Twenty seven-year-old Wani, pursing a PhD course in Allied Geology at the AMU, had quit the university and joined militant ranks in January this year. He was killed in an encounter at Shatgund village in Handwara area of north Kashmir’s Kupwara district on Thursday.

“The already prevailing uncertain situation in Kashmir gets compounded by such incidents. AMU incident is not an isolated one against Kashmiris as in the past, similar incidents have happened in various state of the country.
“It is actually a hate campaign which has been unleashed on Kashmiris outside the state and it has patronage of ruling party in the country, Tarigami alleged.

The Kulgam MLA said thousands of Kashmiri students are studying outside the state and the “atmosphere of hatred against them” has the potential to ruin their career.

“Students need to be provided with peaceful and secure atmosphere both in and outside educational institutions, he said, adding the state governor must take up the issue of harassment of Kashmiri students with the concerned state governments at the earliest and ensure safe and secure environment for Kashmiri students, businessmen, laborers and others working in various states of the country.
He said action must be taken against those found involved in intimidating innocent students from Jammu and Kashmir.
Failure to do so will swell anger and further alienate the general masses. The sooner it is done, the better, he said. PTI