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| June 21, 1931: The day that changed course of JK's history | | | EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, June 20: The fight against Dogra rule took a new turn on June 21, 1931. A young man, Abdul Qadeer delivered a fiery speech at Khankahe-e-Moula ( shrine of Shah-e-Hamdaan in down town Srinagar) and urged the people to fight Dogra oppression. He was arrested and put on trial. On July 13, 1931 when the case was fixed for hearing, a crowd assembled outside Srinagar Central Jail to express solidarity with Qadeer. The Dogra soldiers opened fire killing scores of persons on the spot. This incident changed the course of the struggle.
On April 19, 1931 while the Imam was delivering the Eid sermon in a Municipal Park at Jammu, a police constable, Chowdhury Ram Chand intervened and directed the Imam to stop delivering the sermon. The Muslims took it seriously and registered strong protest. The incident, however, went un-noticed in Srinagar. When the news reached Srinagar, the situation in Jammu had pacified. The leaders of the Reading Room Party pondered. Shabnam Qayoom while quoting some pages of Professor Noor-ud-Din's diary says in his Siyasi Inqilaab, page 50, Vol 1: "A plan was devised to stage a similar drama to evoke strong public reaction in Srinagar. A Muslim constable was taken into confidence by the members of young Mans' Association, Jammu. Posters were kept ready. Constable Sheikh Muhammad Ismaiel accused his Hindu colleague of desecrating the Quran and violent protests broke out in Jammu and Srinagar."
The Reading Room Party and young Man's Association sponsored drama evoked the desired reaction in Srinagar. A series of lectures were delivered by Moulvi Abdullah Vakil, Munshi Naseer, Moulvi Bashir and Ghulam Nabi Gilkar. This is when Sheikh Abdullah was introduced to the public for the first time.
On June 21, 1931 a similar function was held at Khankah-e-Moula. Muslims from all schools of though participated. A large number of women also attended the function. The Muslim leadership forged unity. A committee comprising of seven members was formed to take the struggle forward. The members included Saad-ud-Din Shawl, Mirwaiz Moulvi Yusuf Shah, Mirwaiz Ahmadullah Hamdani, Aga Syed Hasan Jalali, Khawaja Ghulam Ahmad Ashai, Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah and Munshi Shuhab-ud-Din. When the leaders dispersed a young man appeared on the podium and started chanting slogans against Hindus. He said: "Listen. Time has come when we have to act. Requests and memoranda will serve no purpose at this point of time. It will not end tyranny and it will not end desecration of Quran. Stand up upon your legs and fight the tyrant rulers." He pointed towards Raj Mahal (Palace) and said: "Raze it to the ground.
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