JK News Today
Srinagar, November 2
For the first time in the past four months of protests, separatists in their latest protest calendar issued on Wednesday have urged the students to march to their schools on November 7.
The protest calendar issued late this evening listed November 7 as the “school safety day”, a phrase that may be used as a shield by the separatists against the mounting criticism that its line of agitation had encouraged the arsonists to set ablaze the schools.
The shutdowns and street protests were the signature tune of separatists, who called themselves as “resistance leaders” had kept students across the Valley off schools.
The November 7 programme is, “ From 9 am, school children along with parents, elders of the society and Masjid ( mosque) and Resistance committees including youth volunteers march towards respective schools; Organise School Safety Day in school grounds from 11 am to 4 pm; “School your children with the real essence of education, which has been and will remain, the fundamental element in our standing up for freedom, justice and resistance against Indian military occupation; Also take necessary measures at local level to thwart the on-going targeting of our schools by Indian state and its agencies”
The burning of schools in the recent weeks has angered all sections of society. Those who were silent on the agitation so far, including former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and CPI-M leader Mohammad Yusuf Tarigami called for an end to the burning of schools. They called such acts as “ unacceptable.”
More than 25 schools have set ablaze during the unrest.
The separatist leadership, including Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq who were intransigent in exempting schools from the shutdown calls , had also spoken against the burning of schools . They had blamed the “ Indian agencies” for these acts of arson.
However, the High Court’s intervention asking the government to bring all the culprits behind these highly condemnable acts of playing with the future of Kashmir children to justice encouraged the civil; society members and others to lend weight to the demand for opening of the schools in Kashmir which have remained shut for the past four months.
The rest of the protest calendar is carbon copy of the past weekly calendars, except for the fact that the relaxation period has been extended by one hour . Earlier it used to be for 14 hours ( 5 p.m. to 7 next morning), now it would start at 4 p.m. and conclude at 7 a.m. Public transport too has been allowed to move during the “ relaxation “ period.
