Kerala police detain 8 during peaceful gathering against attacks on Kashmiris
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Kerala police in Kochi detained eight activists on Tuesday who had gathered peacefully under the banner of Friends of Palestine to protest the rising atrocities faced by Kashmiris across the country.
The protest followed a wave of attacks and online harassment targeting Kashmiris after the deadly terror attack in Pahalgam, which claimed the lives of at least 26 people, including a local pony wallah.
Rejaz M Sheeba Sydeek, the protest's organizer, told Maktoob Media that he had assured the police the demonstration would remain peaceful and was intended to oppose the ‘collective punishment’ inflicted on Kashmiris. However, the station house officer (SHO) of the Ernakulam Town South police station denied permission, arguing that the event might disrupt public order and create an atmosphere of hostility, Siasat Daily reported.
The eight activists were booked under section 285 (Danger or obstruction in public way), 189(1) (Unlawful Assembly), 191(2)(rioting), and 190 (Liability of members of unlawful assembly) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.
According to the FIR, the protesters were accused of attempting to block the road, thereby disrupting traffic and causing inconvenience to the public.
Targeting of Kashmiris following the Pahalgam attack
Following the terror attack in Pahalgam on April 22, which resulted in multiple casualties, there has been a noticeable increase in incidents targeting Kashmiris, particularly students living in different parts of India. The Jammu and Kashmir Students Association (JKSA) has reported several instances of harassment, threats, and physical assaults against Kashmiri students, raising serious concerns about their safety. Just a day before the Kochi protest, a Kashmiri student at a pharmacy college in Nagpur, Maharashtra, was reportedly beaten by a group of local residents.
On the same day, two Kashmiri shawl vendors in Mussoorie, Uttarakhand, were assaulted by a group of local men and forced to close their shop.
In several states, including Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, and Chandigarh, many Kashmiri students reported being pressured to leave their hostels or rented accommodations.
At the Universal Group of Institutions in Derabassi, Chandigarh, students were allegedly attacked with sharp weapons inside the hostel premises, resulting in one student sustaining serious injuries.
Meanwhile, Kashmiri Muslim women are being subjected to widespread Islamophobic abuse and sexually explicit threats, including calls for rape, by right-wing users on social media platforms.
