Yasin Itoo's funeral: No violence sets precedent

SRINAGAR: Though thousands of residents of

Nagam

in

Chadoora

on Monday joined Hizb operational commander Yasin Itoo alias Mehmood Ghaznavi ’s funeral, there were no reports of any violence.

Amid restrictions, thousands of people from the nearby areas attended the funeral amidst pro-pak, Pro-Azadi and most interestingly pro-Zakir Musa slogans. Similar scenes were available at the funeral of

Irfan Ul-Haq

at Maldair village in Shopian .

Interestingly, the Hizb activists used sticks to restrain the funeral processionists at Kulgam and shopian against raising pro-Zakir Musa slogans. However, Zakir Musa’s narrative about Kashmir problem and connecting it with the jihad, has certainly changed the mindset of the

kashmiri

youth.

Notwithstanding the huge participation of the people in the funerals of three slain militants, the demonstrators avoided forcing shutdown in the Valley. There was, however, stone-pelting in Nagam Chadoora, the native place of Yasin itoo.

Reports said that people raised pro-Azadi and pro-militant slogans and also chanted anti-India and anti government slogans.

Another noteworthy feature was there were no slogans from the mosques.

The political analysts, however, attribute the change of mind amongst the Kashmiri youth to the recent audio statement of deposed Hizb commander Zakir Rashid Bhat alias Musa, when he threatened Hurriyat leaders of death if they continue to call the Kashmiri struggle, a political struggle rather than Islamic uprising.

“Hum kuffar ko chooud kar pehley aap ko latkayain gay… Lal Chowk mein in kay galay katain gay…” the former Hizb commander said in an audio message that was shared on social media .

Zakir insisted that the 27-year-old armed movement in Kashmir is Islamic, not political. Without naming any particular Hurriyat leader, Mossa termed them as “hypocrites”. He warned them not to use mosques and other Islamic symbols and slogans if they believe that the Kashmir struggle is political.

“You are our big problem… if you have to run this dirty politics, run it in your homes… if we have to implement the Shariah, we have to implement it on ourselves,” Zakir alias Musa had said in an audio tape .

“I am not an ulema, but the scholars here are corrupt… fearful of crossing limits that they may be imprisoned, that is why we have to come forward,” he says, quoting a verse from the Qur’an. “They are actually political leaders and they can’t be our leaders,” Zakir said .

“Zakir’s statement about jihad changed the narrative of the Kashmir problem and it definitely changed the mind of the common kashmiri more importantly, the youth’s mind. The stone-pelting ceased even in the most affected areas in south kashmir and down town in srinagar,” political analyst said.