Indian police harasses Kashmiri students

[Omar1984]

Indian police harasses Kashmiri students

SRINAGAR, (SANA): Kashmiri students in Indian city Madhya Pradesh have said that the local police are harassing them without any reason.

The students studying in some colleges and universities of MP have reported to their parents that they are either called or taken to police station and being questioned.

Muhammad Abdullah, a resident of Rafiabad area of Baramulla said that his son told him over phone that MP police contingent had come to their makeshift residence in the evening two days ago, snatched the identity cards of three students and ordered them to report in the nearby police station in the morning.

My son along with three other classmates went to police station and they were questioned there for one and a half hours,” he said, adding that he was very much worried about his son.

Abdullah said that his son told him that the MP police was also conducting nocturnal raids at the makeshift residences of Kashmiri students. “He told me that police at times catch hold of Kashmiri students outside the colleges, check their identity cards and question them during last few days,” he added.

Mushtaq Ahmad Lone of Kulgam reported similar incident to his family. “My brother said the police was harassing them for the last few days,” Abdul Rashid, brother of Mushtaq said and expressed grave concern over the harassment of Kashmir students in MP.

He called upon the puppet administration of the occupied territory to take up the issue with the MP government.

It is pertinent to mention here that during last year, Qaiser Ahmed Dar, a Kashmiri student who had gone to MP to register himself as a PhD student at Sagar University, was arrested by the Bhopal anti-terrorist squad (ATS) without any reason and was released after nine days.


Indian police harasses Kashmiri students | National | South Asian News Agency

 

[Roybot]

The source seems very legit.

 

[Omar1984]

The source seems very legit.

Here is an indian news article from few months ago on the discrimination Kashmiri students face in India:

‘Madhya Pradesh discriminating against Kashmiri students'


The Madhya Pradesh government has found itself embroiled in a controversy after being accused of trying to keep Kashmiri students out of higher educational institutions in the State.

The most vocal has been Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah who expressed concern over discrimination against Kashmiri students in Madhya Pradesh after the State government notified changes in the guidelines of admission to higher education institutions in the State.

Mr. Abdullah expressed disappointment over the issue. “Disgraceful: Hindutva groups campaign to keep Kashmiri students out of M.P.,” he stated on the social networking site Twitter

The latest “admission guidelines/guiding principles for admissions” notified by the State's Higher Education Department make Kashmiri students ineligible for admission to the State's public as well as private higher education institutions.

While under the older guidelines, “Kashmiri displaced/students” were eligible for admission, the new guidelines omit the term ‘students' leaving only “Kashmiri displaced”— implying Kashmiri Pandits — eligible for admission.

ABVP demand

The change has reportedly come about after demands from the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

“Look, out of 400 post-graduate students at Bhopal's Barkatullah University, 175 are from the Kashmir valley. The benefits entitled to Kashmiri displaced are being received by students from the valley,” ABVP general secretary B.D. Sharma told The Hindu.

“These students get mass admissions based on fake documents through the admission mafia and do all kinds of weird activities on the campus creating an atmosphere of insecurity among other students. They have even built a mosque on the campus premises. The situation is true of almost all universities of Madhya Pradesh,” Mr. Sharma said. “It is not our demand, but that of troubled students from all over Madhya Pradesh,” he added.

The Jammu and Kashmir government has reportedly asked for a detailed report from its police chief.

Following Mr. Abdullah's tweet, State Culture and Higher Education Minister Laxmikant Sharma in a statement condemned Mr. Abdullah's remarks.

“There is no question of discrimination against any student of Jammu & Kashmir or any other State, for that matter. Admissions in Madhya Pradesh colleges are conducted as per rules,” Mr. Sharma has stated.

“Remarks uncalled for”

Mr. Sharma termed Mr. Abdullah's remarks “unnecessary and uncalled for” and said the Madhya Pradesh government had granted special concessions in the admission rules to the wards of people displaced from Kashmir.

The government statement, however, was silent on why the word “student” was removed retaining only the expression “Kashmiri displaced.”

“This is not a new development. The ABVP has been running this campaign for the last one year. Jammu and Kashmir is a conflict-ridden State and education has suffered because of that.

“Now if students from the State come to study in other States, should they be encouraged or victimised?” asked Ibrahim Quereshi, former Chairman of the State Minority Commission.

Recently, two Kashmiri students of Barkatullah University emailed Mr. Omar Abdullah about alleged discrimination against them in the university hostels. However, the State government has clarified that the matter had been enquired into and no discrimination was found.

‘Not an isolated case'

Shujaat Bukhari reports from Srinagar:

People's Democratic Party leader Naeem Akthar criticised the BJP-led government and said the State government should take up the issue with M.P. to prevent harassment of Kashmiri students.

“It is the responsibility of the Jammu and Kashmir government to protect its people. This is not an isolated case, the trend of persecution of Kashmiris in other States has to be curbed,” he said.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) State secretary M.Y. Tarigami said that Kashmiris have a right to study in Madhya Pradesh or other States of India. “M.P. is not the fiefdom of the BJP or the ABVP and we will resist their designs with like-minded secular and progressive friends there,” he said.


The Hindu : News / National : ‘Madhya Pradesh discriminating against Kashmiri students'

 

[Omar1984]

Kashmiri students 'security concern': ABVP

Muslim students from Kashmir are at the receiving end of a campaign in Madhya Pradesh unleashed by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student organisation affiliated to the ruling BJP. Kashmiri Muslims are a security concern, they associate with the banned Students’ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and are making Bhopal a hub of anti-national activity, says ABVP.

The bone of contention is a 1% quota for Kashmiri migrants, which the ABVP insists should mean only Kashmiri Pandits.

“There have been illegal activities, with a lot of Kashmiri Muslims taking admission under the 1% quota which is meant for Kashmiri Vistapith (Pandits),” said Vishnu Dutt Sharma, zonal general secretary, ABVP. “Their police verification should be tighter.”

The organisation is demanding stricter scrutiny of Kashmiri Muslim students and restricting their access to education.

Bhopal has been a favoured destination for Kashmiri students for its easy train connectivity, low cost of living and friendly environment.

“We choose Bhopal because education is cheaper than in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Pune and Chennai and can be easily afforded by students who come from small villages in the Valley,” said Imtiaz, a student of Barkatullah University.

The university authorities, however, disagree.

“Any Kashmiri who is a migrant, whether or not a Kashmiri pandit, can get admission under the 1% quota reserved for them,” said Sanjay Tiwari, registrar, Barkatullah University. “Last year there had been a request from the MP students to make provisions so they could be given preference over students from other states.”

Reacting to the ABVP stance, J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah recently tweeted: “Disgraceful: Hindutva groups campaign to keep Kashmiri students out of Madhya Pradesh.”

“They always say Kashmir is ours, but they should remember that Kashmiris are also ours. Integrating Kashmir does not just mean the land but the people also,” Aligarh-based historian Shireen Moosvi told HT.


Kashmiri students 'security concern': ABVP - Hindustan Times

 

[Abingdonboy]

Harassment, you really will jump on anything. Just because the location is Kashmir this is news. You should visit inner-city London (any inner city in the western world) you will see similar measures against certain sections of the community because of valid statistics and concerns. In London the police have the right to stop and search anyone they like without prior authorisation and doesn't even need a real reason. Have you ever been through US airport security, I'd dare you (as a brown person) to go through it and not call what you go throu "harassment". Let's not forget how far Kashmir has come and that not too long able there was a VERY serious security issue in the valley, it is only logical to expect such measures- heck it was probably measures like this that has played a major part in the significant reduction in terrorism.

 

[Roybot]

Here is an indian news article from few months ago on the discrimination Kashmiri students face in India:

‘Madhya Pradesh discriminating against Kashmiri students'

The Hindu : News / National : ‘Madhya Pradesh discriminating against Kashmiri students'

This is a totally different issue!

Kashmiri students get reservation to get in government run universities and institutions all over India(Bet you never hear about that in your biased media source). There are seats reserved for Kashmiri students( even if they are not deserving academically).

Madhya Pradesh government decided stop giving reservations to Kashmiri students in the state government run institutions.

Its not discrimination, more like bringing an end to positive discrimination.

 

[Omar1984]

^ Its obvious Kashmiri students have been suffering from discrimination for months according to this news and nothing has changed.

Bhopal Kashmiri student says ‘harassed’ due to beard, taken for militant at bank - Indian Express

“We don’t want separatists from Kashmir in Bhopal in the guise of students,” ABVP said.

MP to scrutinise Kashmiri students - Indian Express

 

[Roybot]

^ Its obvious Kashmiri students have been suffering from discrimination for months according to this news and nothing has changed.

Bring me more reliable and unbiased source. The one that doesn't refer to Kashmir as occupied territory and doesn't have "reliable and accurate news service" as its slogan.

Either case, If one or two Kashmiri students are questioned by the police that is no discrimination. Asking for ID is probably the most common police procedure in the world.