Memories of Srinagar’s Chotta Bazaar massacre still haunt Kashmiris
Srinagar: The memories of the Chotta Bazaar, Srinagar, carnage, one of the most brutal massacres perpetrated by Indian troops in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, still haunt Kashmiris in Srinagar on the eve of its martyrdom anniversary.
A report released by Kashmir Media Service on the completion of 35 years of the deadly Chotta Bazaar massacre in Srinagar said that on this day in 1991, the Indian paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) went berserk after an alleged clash with unknown attackers at Zainakadal in the city. It said the troops opened indiscriminate fire with their automatic weapons all the way from their camp at Syed Mansoor to Chotta Bazaar in the densely populated downtown area of Srinagar. At least 32 people were killed, while 22 others were injured in the carnage. The bullets hit shopkeepers, passers-by, a 75-year-old woman, and a 10-year-old child.
The report said that even after the passage of over three decades, this blood-curdling incident still causes a deep stir in the hearts of scores of bereaved families whose kith and kin were massacred. It added that 35 years have passed, but the memories of the Chotta Bazaar massacre are still fresh in the minds of the Kashmiri people, and the victims have not been delivered justice.
The report said Indian troops have carried out dozens of massacres like the Chotta Bazaar Srinagar carnage since 1989 to suppress the Kashmiris’ freedom struggle. It pointed out that the aim of committing such brutalities was to instill fear among the Kashmiris and intimidate them into submission.
However, it said that the bold and resilient Kashmiris were determined to carry forward their freedom struggle until it reached its logical conclusion.
The report said that the massacres in IIOJK are ugly blots on the face of Indian occupation and its state terrorism, and that the international community must take notice of the genocide of Kashmiris by India.
The All Parties Hurriyat Conference leadership and different parties, through posters and social media, paid homage to the martyrs of Chotta Bazaar and said that no power on earth can defeat the Kashmiris’ right-to-self-determination movement. It urged the United Nations to take cognizance of Indian state terrorism in IIOJK and play a role in granting the Kashmiris their inalienable right.
They added that by killing innocent youth, India could not suppress the freedom sentiment of the Kashmiri people, who were determined to continue their freedom struggle until complete success.
The APHC said that the struggle for freedom will continue until the implementation of the United Nations resolutions. It asked India to reverse its decision of August 5, 2019, to maintain the identity and disputed status of Jammu and Kashmir. The leaders also asked the people of the occupied territory to express solidarity with the victim families and frustrate the BJP-RSS regime’s nefarious designs to alter the demographic composition of the territory.
Meanwhile, people visited the graveyard in Srinagar and paid rich tributes to the martyrs of Kashmir.
