An editorial in the Kashmir Images speaks for the silent majority
Stoning Sanity
A newborn baby, on way to hospital for medical check-up, died at Baramulla as stone pelters would not allow the vehicle, he was in, to pass. They pelted stones on the vehicle, forced the parents of the newborn to join ‘protests’ and when they declined, the stone pelters scuffled with ill-fated parents which caused some fatal injury to the newborn resulting into his death.
Tragic, shocking and uncalled for! But is anybody concerned? Would there be any protests against the ‘murder’ of this newborn? Will any group or leader call for a strike to mourn the death of a child who had just eleven days back landed into this world? Will government order a probe to ‘identify the killers’? Will Mehboobas, Geelanis, Maliks and Mirwaizs issue statements of condemnation? No, nothing of the sort will happen because this killing is not going to help the political agendas of all these groups including the government. The death of the newborn will hardly find any mention in the columns of our writers and intellectuals and Bar Association will never have an ‘all party conference’ to discuss the issue. And champions of human rights will not utter a word.
The tragic incident should serve as an eye opener for those who have been advocating stone pelting and describing stone pelters as heroes of resistance. In Baramulla the stone pelters resisted this newborn’s drive to hospital resulting into his death. Everyday there are scores of ailing people who can’t reach to hospitals because there are groups of youth allover pelting stones on anything and everything that dares to move. One may give some margin to these young boys – they are too young to understand and realize what harm their activities are doing to peoples’ lives, education and economy. But what about the matured, educated and experienced people who advocate stone pelting and thus encourage the youth to indulge in this fatal game? They are the people whose wards never take to streets instead are comfortably studying in best and reputed schools and colleges. They never tell their own children to skip their academic classes and throw stones on police and para militaries. But when it comes to the children of lesser mortals, they are there to encourage them for stone pelting and pat them.
Is it a class war with a difference? Are the rich and elite of the society intending to make the poor poorer by keeping their children busy in stone pelting so that they don’t study? The lawyers, who advocate stone pelting, are earning huge sums from their clients and the politicians too are comfortably placed but fail to realize the trauma of a poor man who can’t earn when stone pelting is going on and thus can’t feed his family in the evening.