Certificate of no sympathy

It is hereby to award the Jammu and Kashmir police of not being militant sympathisers. I do understand that the Inspector General of Police, Kashmir said, “We don’t need anyone’s certificate.” but in reality the police gets a certificate each time a ‘militant’ is caught and killed or caught and tried for the militant actions.

But isn’t it natural to think that the JKPolice should sympathise with the ‘militants’ – for militant in Kashmir is everyone who cries for freedom, – an old man who cries for his disappeared child and screams out loud is just as much a militant as a child who runs after the army/police vehicle with a stone in his hand. And these people who have ‘turned’ militants are people who the police men have seen and interacted with in their everyday lives – the kandur’s son (baker’s son), the kid who plays with my child, the old man who used to be dad’s friend and so on.

I cannot imagine what goes in their minds while these men want to serve ‘the government’ and do their jobs while they have to deal with their own brethren. It must be difficult. Very difficult.

What must be even more difficult is to see hatred in the eyes of your very own people – who scorn at you as the ‘pols’ewol’ – the one of their own kind who is after them.

It must be difficult – to catch 12 year olds and label them as militants. But yet, the police is doing their job – and they shall get their certificate.

Since 2008, the Government has detained dozens of children on charges of stone pelting and taking part in separatist protests. Recently the detention of 12-year old Faizan of Srinagar for taking part in anti-Government protests made headlines. A class 6 student, Faizan was charged by police with harsh accusations like ‘waging war against the State’ and ‘attempt to murder.’ http://www.greaterkashmir.com/news/2012/Sep/1/juvenile-home-is-just-another-jail-39.asp