[Reader-list] Flag nationalism

[SJabbar]

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 26, 2011



‘Jhansi kii raani’ arrested while sending JKLF flags in air at Maisuma

Before his arrest, Yasin Malik had put two persons from UP on the Azadi task


Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

SRINAGAR, Jan 26: With all eyes on Kashmiri Muslim supporters of Yasin Malik
to fail their attempts of hoisting anti-national flags at Lal Chowk, Police
today discovered that JKLF’s balloons were sent in air nowhere but Malik’s
residential locality of Maisuma. Two persons were found doing the Azadi job
with an inflating machine. Both of them, immediately arrested by Police, are
members of the majority community from Jhansi city of Uttar Pradesh. Malik,
alongwith 16 separatist activists, was himself arrested by Police parallel
to a crackdown on BJP activists as 25 of them were picked up from different
locations. On occasion of the Republic Day, BJP and JKLF had announced plans
to install conflicting flags on the Clock Tower at Lal Chowk.

Informed sources revealed to Early Times that Police swooped on a
residential house in Maisuma minutes after JKLF balloons were spotted flying
in air. Thirty-year-old Prakash and 20-year-old Koli, both residents of
Jhansi, were caught red-handed while inflating and sending the balloons in
air with the help of a pumping machine. Their balloons and machine were
seized and both the youngsters were detained at a local Police Station.

SSP Srinagar, Syed Ashiq Hussain Bukhari, confirmed the arrest of the most
unexpected duo from Jhansi. He said Prakash as well as the young woman,
Koli, disclosed during questioning that they had been making and selling the
balloons in Batmaloo area. They revealed that they had been specially
engaged by JKLF activists for the job of sending balloons in air on January
26th from a house in Maisuma. Bukhari said that Police were likely to file
an FIR against the duo after assessing all related circumstances within next
24 hours.

Earlier today, amid total shutdown in Kashmir valley and undeclared curfew
in Srinagar, Police arrested Malik alongwith 16 of his separatist associates
as they emerged from Maisuma and began proceeding towards nearby Lal Chowk
while shouting pro-Azadi slogans. Many of them carried JKLF flags in hand.
Those arrested included representatives from different constituents of
Mirwaiz Umar-led Hurriyat Conference, like Bilal Gani Lone of Peoples
Conference and Shahidul Islam of Awami Action Committee.

Once dreaded militants of Hizbullah and JKLF, Yasin Malik, Shahidul Islam,
Mohammad Iqbal Gandroo, Showkat Bakhshi and Javed Ahmed Zargar did not offer
any resistance to Police. That Police were in agreement with them in holding
“a restricted show” was evident from the fact that all of them had gathered
at Malik’s office and marched through the fully cleared lane before being
picked up gently and packed into vehicles. They were later lodged at Police
Stations of Kothibagh, Rajbagh and Kralkhud.

Malik, Lone and their key associates were detained at Kothibagh where over a
dozen of BJP activists had already been lodged. Informed sources said that
full hospitality and protocol was provided to the detainees who were free to
interact with anybody on mobile phones. Police arranged lunch and dinner for
them all. Sources said that one unidentified BJP activist was arrested and
his flag was seized immediately after he came out of a Delhi-Srinagar
Kingfisher plane at Srinagar Airport. He was whisked away to the Police
Gazetted Officers Mess at Police Division Humhama where three of the party’s
MLAs from Jammu were already detained.

As already reported in today’s newspapers, BJP’s MLAs Prof Garu Ram, Jugal
Kishore and Sham Choudhary, alongwith a party activist from Udhampur, Pawan
Gupta, had been detained on their arrival at Srinagar Airport yesterday.
Authoritative sources today said that as many as 25 BJP activists, having
reached here from different Indian states, were taken into custody by Police
from different places in the capital city. Six of them were staying at Hotel
Broadway, two at Hotel Pamposh and few others in residential houses of party
workers in Habbakadal area. Sources said that most of them informed Police
and mediapersons on phone about their whereabouts.

Officials said that all the BJP and JKLF detainees would be released in the
forenoon on Thursday. Authorities were yet to decide whether they would be
allowed to proceed with their plans of holding separate press conferences.

Even as all the scheduled flights operated at Srinagar Airport today and
Police maintained surveillance on every incoming and outgoing passenger,
Srinagar-Jammu national highway remained closed for traffic. Officials
admitted that the unprecedented decision had been taken and enforced only to
prevent BJP activists from arriving in the Valley. However, around a
thousand trucks were allowed to reach from Srinagar and Anantnag to
Qazigund.

The establishment succeeding in holding a trouble-free state ceremony on the
R-Day at Bakhshi Stadium in Srinagar and all other district headquarters.
While as Minister of Finance Abdul Rahim Rather was the chief guest at the
main ceremonial parade in Srinagar, nine other Ministers took the salute and
hoisted the Tricolour at similar ceremonies at other district headquarters.
There were no reports of any untoward incident as Police and security forces
enforced restrictions on ordinary civilian movement and the separatist
groups had, as usual, called for total shutdown. Consequently, transport was
fully off the road, people remained confined to their homes and none of the
shops or any other business establishments were open in the Valley.

Separatist hardliners Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Shabir Shah were not allowed
to move out of their residences while as other separatist leaders did not
make any attempt to come out and disturb peace.

In Srinagar, Lal Chowk area was found completely out of bounds for
everybody. None of the unauthorized officials was allowed to pass through
Civil Lines as Police had put barbed wire barriers on all incoming and
outgoing roads. For the first time since 1947, not a single journalist was
allowed to pass through Lal Chowk. Most of the mediapersons had already
shifted from their offices and residences in Press Enclave to other
locations in the city due to undeclared curfew in town.



On 25/01/11 4:47 PM, "Lalit Ambardar" <lalitambardar at hotmail.com> wrote:

> How ironic ?
> 'Guys' went scot free for 'stone pelting' but will now face prosecution for
> 'attempt' to hoist the 'flag'.. ...???.....
> Rgds all
> LA
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ---------------------------------------------------------
> 
>> > Date: Tue, 25 Jan 2011 11:49:08 +0530
>> > From: rashneek at gmail.com
>> > To: sonia.jabbar at gmail.com
>> > CC: reader-list at sarai.net
>> > Subject: Re: [Reader-list] Flag nationalism
>> > 
>> > At least it confirms that we have mercenary activists...
>> > 
>> > On Tue, Jan 25, 2011 at 10:19 AM, SJabbar <sonia.jabbar at gmail.com> wrote:
>> > 
>>> > > BJP R-day flags, activists Œstone-pelters¹
>>> > > Bashaarat Masood Posted online: Mon Jan 24 2011, 09:12 hrs
>>> > > Srinagar : In what could prove an embarrassment for the BJP, the police
>>> > > said
>>> > > that two of its activists arrested on Saturday, ahead of the party¹s
>>> > > planned
>>> > > yatra to hoist the Tricolour at Lal Chowk, are known stone-pelters.
>>> > > ³We arrested six BJP activists. Two of them turned out to be listed
>>> > > stone-throwers,² Senior Superintendent of Police, Srinagar, Ashiq
>>> Bukhari
>>> > > told The Indian Express.
>>> > >
>>> > > Denying that the men belonged to the party, the state president of
>>> > > Bharatiya
>>> > > Janata Yuva Morcha Shamsher Singh Manhas said: ³We are for the integrity
of
>>> > > the state. The police are baffled by our programme... now they are
>>> > > inventing
>>> > > these stories. We have no idea about the people arrested by the police.
We
>>> > > have been informed only about arrest of three activists.²
>>> > >
>>> > > Incidentally, BJP state vice-president Sofi Mohammad Yousuf had
>>> confirmed
>>> > > the arrest of the six party activists, calling it an attempt to foil the
>>> > > party¹s Republic Day programme. ³We were making preparations for the
>>> > > welcome
>>> > > of BJP activists visiting Kashmir. When our activists left home, some of
>>> > > them were arrested,² Yousuf told The Indian Express.
>>> > >
>>> > > Of the six alleged BJP activists, held from Srinagar for ³violating²
>>> > > prohibitory orders, were 22-year-old Wasim Hassan and Imtiyaz Ahmad, 24,
>>> > > both residents of downtown Srinagar, a stronghold of separatists.
>>> > >
>>> > > Sources say that Hassan, a resident of Qamarwari, and Ahmad of Nawab >>>
Bazar
>>> > > were involved in stone-throwing during the June uprising and that police
>>> > > are
>>> > > investigating cases against them.
>>> > >
>>> > > Inspector General of Police, Kashmir, Shiv Murari Sahai confirmed the
>>> same.
>>> > > _________________________________________
>>> > > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city.
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>>> > > subscribe in the subject header.
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>> > 
>> > 
>> > 
>> > 
>> > -- 
>> > Rashneek Kher
>> > http://www.kashmiris-in-exile.blogspot.com
>> > http://www.nietzschereborn.blogspot.com
>> > _________________________________________
>> > reader-list: an open discussion list on media and the city.
>> > Critiques & Collaborations
>> > To subscribe: send an email to reader-list-request at sarai.net with subscribe
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>