Massacre of Muslims in Jammu blackest chapter of Kashmir history: Waza

Massacre of Muslims in Jammu blackest chapter of Kashmir history: Waza 

Srinagar, November 06:

Senior APHC leader and Jammu Kashmir Peoples League Chairman, Mukhtar Ahmad Waza while paying glowing tributes to Jammu martyrs, termed the massacre of Muslims in Jammu by the forces of Maharaja and communal elements backed by India, a tragedy and blackest chapter in Kashmir history liberation struggle.

Mukhtar Ahmad Waza who continues to be under house arrest from past nine days, said that forces of Maharaja and RSS goons in Jammu slaughtered thousands of Muslims just to change the demography of the region.

He said that such was the intensity of carnage that in Jammu province about 123 villages were ‘completely depopulated’. Kathua district ‘lost’ almost fifty per cent of its Muslim population. Thousands of Gujars were massacred in mohalla Ramnagar. Village Raipur, within Jammu cantonment area was completely burnt down. The Dogra troops were at the forefront of attacks on Muslims. The State authorities were also issuing arms not only to local volunteer organizations such as the RSS, but also to those in surrounding East Punjab districts such as Gurdaspur.

“On 6 November surviving Muslims were told to assemble in an open ground, to be sent to Pakistan, herded in trucks like cattle and killed mercilessly with machine gun fire between the Digiana and Samba belt.” Waza said, adding women were abducted and raped.

He also paid tributes to Kashmiri 90 tongawallas (horse-cart drivers) who were massacred at Nagrota.

Waza said that when Hindu refugees from Muzaffarabad and surrounding areas reaching Kashmir desired to be sent to Jammu or Punjab, local Muslims motivated Kashmiri tongawallas (horse-cart drivers) to transport them to Jammu against heavy odds. Initially 22 tongawallas were hired. They were later joined by many others from the Khannabal-Qazigund rural belt. On return all these poor tongawallas numbering around 90 were massacred near Nagrota.

He said that the memories of massacre and genocide of Muslims in Jammu in 1947 would continue to haunt our history for the ages to come. “Sacrifices of Jammu martyrs have a historical significance and are an important asset of the ongoing freedom struggle.” Waza, adding People of Jammu and Kashmir will collectively take the ongoing freedom movement to its logical conclusion.

Waza said that Indian government with the help of Kashmiri collaborators (mainstream politicians) was carrying forward the plan of changing the demography of Kashmir by killing innocent Kashmiris and bringing non-state subjects in Kashmir.

He appealed common masses to resist such moves by exposing those officers of the puppet administration who are giving permanent residential certificates to non-state subjects.