Resistance and Resolution amidst the simmering Kani Jung: collecting stones for Freedom Inshah Malik Kani

Jung (stone pelting) is the current inclination of the most cherished Azadi which has incarcerated the tea table discussions of the middle class Kashmir as much it has occupied the intelligent vision and political space. The questions hoisted are whether pelting stones by the children on mighty military apparatus staged in Kashmir is good or bad The state government is trying to nullify the repercussions of the repression that the community as a whole has suffered by undermining the legitimacy of this protest. The creation of downtown as a social re!ect and its youth as a "left over# is nothing less than an irony used to initiate a purposeful division among populations. $owntown was the epi%center of armed struggle in &'(') a reverence point that had attracted masses. *ut today it stands ghettoized due to the strong class consciousness that emanated from the migratory movements of newly formed intelligentsia to the upper town in +rinagar. The strong detachment of this educated class from ground level issues has led to ignoring the reincarnation of violent protests e,actly thirty years later in the downtown. -t is a strong sign that movements do not die but transform. Transformations are phase oriented) e,perimental as well as result see.ing. These so called "left over# populations in the downtown are the apt manifestations of this oppressive trade. These youngsters who mob the downtown roads are mostly the ones with firsthand e,perience of violence. They have been dwelt with fashionable military mechanism and eliminated !ust as viruses from the computer device. /ver past one year children have died on the roads of Kashmir and the frequency of getting rid of them is faster that any of the state functionaries. This feeds into decades of mistrust and in!ustice between state and its sub!ects vigorously. The situation now is e,actly what it was in &'(' and nothing has changed of the confusion and frustrations of the youth and this time the guns are replaced by the pebbles and the teenagers by eight year olds. 0rotestors are crippled and laden

with the burden of the dead. The downtown has provided ground to burry (1)111 dead so far and Kashmir is still mourning. $esolation has filled the populations and the sense of victim hood is robust) the careless pebbles pic.ed up by the children to show resentment meet the bullets from the state. "0ebble# must be a sign of intimidation for the 2ation#s sovereignty and for each "virus# eliminated thousands will recuperate must be borne in mind. 3ach death is a scar on the memory that sharpens at every attac. on commoners. These are the signs of resurgence of this resistance after bypassing the non%violent phase of Amarnath row in 411(. 3very Kashmiri today wants peace) -t is indeed attainable and not some philanthropic act of an elite. 2o one wants to live in indignant circumstances but a compromise will not quench this thirst and it cannot be called peace. Kashmir has been reduced to a laboratory and its populations to guinea pigs for the intelligentsia from -ndia and the world who claim to be the problem solvers and sympathizers. A home born "pebble# is a symbol of sustainability and when it is hurled) it should not be underestimated and reduced to "an act of ignorant# it is a weapon to attain peace. 0eace for a child in downtown is 5a situation when one fine morning he wa.es up to go to school and he doesn#t have to see an army man who perhaps .illed his father6. -f peace is act of charity then let us beg it for our children. The impunity and treacherous human rights violations fuel the victim hood and it has helped the people to move beyond their limitations and face the bullets unarmed. The question arises how many more can still be .illed because the genius of the gun is crippling 7hen will the sta.e holders to the peace process or conflict resolution hear the noise that the stones are ma.ing or isn#t it loud enough 2ote8 -nshah 9ali. is a 0h$ scholar at the Tata -nstitute of social sciences) 9umbai) -ndia -nshah.mali.:tiss.edu