On the 11th of March, a controversial movie was released in India named “The Kashmir Files”. This movie displays that in 1989-90, Kashmir, Islamic militants storm and banish Kashmiri Hindu pandits from the valley using the slogan “Raliv, Galiv ya chaliv” (convert (to Islam), leave or die). The subject of the film was an exodus of Kashmiri pandits that took place between the late 80s and early 90s. Article 370 which grants nominally autonomous status to Jammu and Kashmir, is named as one of the reasons for the displacement of the Kashmiri pandits.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has endorsed and promoted the film. It was declared tax free in multiple BJP governed States such as Goa, Gujrat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and Uttrakhand, with calls by several chief ministers and members of parliament for everyone to watch the movie.
The film has widely promoted Islamophobia in terms of Prime Minister Modi and director of the movie Vivek Agnihotri as the revelation of truth. After watching the film people were heated with anger and frustration, aggressively stepped forward to humiliate Muslims. The film Kashmir Files is a deep conspiracy and propaganda trapped for Indian Muslims. The movie exhibits Kashmir as an integral region that is a myth merely. Kashmir was never an integral part of India, However, after bullish accession of the Indian army into the valleys of Kashmir, it was promised by then, Prime Minister Mr: Nehru to announce plebiscite but plebiscite never ensued. By and by, with the passage of time, the Indian government elevated authorities and interposed central affairs including it in Kashmir.
Currently, Muslims are targeted and the hijab is outlawed in schools, colleges and offices for Muslim women. The constitution of India which maintained the umbrella of justice and protected rights of Muslims has now been torn apart, due to indolent and obsolete policies of the ruling government. The formation of the movie and its distribution was certainly looked after by the government.
The film is so sensitive that it burns old wounds and hurts emotions not solely of Hindus in particular but Muslims as well, who are demonstrated as the brand ambassadors of terrorism.
SAJID ALI NAICH
KHAIRPUR
