Meher Qadri
“You were huddled up there, as far from your childhood as you were from the land of oranges – the oranges that, according to a peasant who used to cultivate them until he left, would shrivel up if a change occurred, and they were watered by a strange hand”- The Land of sad Oranges- Ghassan Kannafani.
Despotism is by no means limited to the domain of politics. “Oppression could only be fully understood when the understanding of it integrates the domains of both the political and the psychological. The psychological impact of oppression suggests that the erasure and removal of intrinsic cultural identities influenced by oppressive practices”- Prilleltensky and Gonick (1996).
For us, it started with stereotyping of the Kashmiri identity in Bollywood films. A Pheran, the bearded guy always a suspect or terrorist (for them) , a Kashmiri speaking with a funny accent in English, inserting words like Kehwa and Jaana, and fetishizing everything Kashmiri. From our red cheeks, our long noses to an overused word Fair skinned. The image India saw that of Kashmir was this.
Nobody knows how to make a vegetarian Wazwan in Kashmir. But I am here to bring about a change. #TheKashmirFiles pic.twitter.com/E1TOqtWSzK
— Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri (@vivekagnihotri) January 13, 2021
Post the Abrogation Article 370 on 5th August 2019, where the Government of India revoked the special status, or limited autonomy, granted under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution to Jammu Kashmir—that consists of the larger part of Kashmir which has been the subject of dispute among India, Pakistan, and China since 1947.
And then a new domicile law which replaced Article 35A was issued amidst the raging Covid-19 pandemic that paved the way for an Indian citizen to buy land in the Erstwile state of j&k. In the backdrop of redefining hereditary state subject laws in Kashmir, the new grounds for getting domicile for non-diasporic Kashmiris are bound to raise tensions among locals due to the perceived ease of access. According to the order, individuals residing in the state for a minimum period of 15 years; worked for the government in Jammu Kashmir for at least 10 years; studied in the state for at least seven years and appeared for a board examination are eligible for domicile certificate.
According to the new guidelines, children of those who worked or studied in the Valley for the stipulated period are also eligible for domicile even if they have never been to or lived in the state. In the last one year, the tactics to change our cultural identity have changed drastically.
The perception of Kashmir finally having assimilated with India and the propagation of this message through various Actors has peaked, be it the woman smoking hookah on the streets of Lal Chowk, the drunk man dancing on our streets, or Indian right-wing propagandists like @vivekagnihotri promoting veg Waazwaan.
These acts may look insignificant and that of a buffoon. On social media sites like Twitter and Facebook, they are a laughing matter for a few hours. We express rage and disbelief, most of us interact with this content as we see fit. Humor and sarcasm at our best tools on most days. But we need to see it for what it really is A Cultural onslaught.
They are carefully cultivating an image of a Kashmir where an Indian would come and settle. Outsiders have been coming and flexing the cultural onslaught. An approach to the cultural onslaught is to adopt a passive, defensive position against the offensive culture. However one has to act wisely and thoughtfully.
Our Land, Our Identity and Our, Existence are at stake. We have to be vigilant of such vile acts that slowly are aimed at presenting a picture of a developing and changing #NayaKashmir for the world. The world that has been mute to our sufferings so far.
“There is no such thing as a demiurge, that there is no famous man who will take the responsibility for everything, but that the demiurge is the people themselves and the magic hands are finally only the hands of the people”- Frantz Fanon.