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| J&K's secularism shines, one lakh Yatris in five days | | |
Early Times Report
Srinagar, July 1: More than one lakh Yatris have so far had 'Darshan' at the Amarnath Cave Shrine as the rush of more Yatris queuing up for the Yatra continued both at Baltal and Nunwan base camps. Thankfully this year's Yatra is continuing smoothly and with religious fervor.
The security forces drawn from the army, Border Security Force (BSF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the state police have been doing round the clock duties to provide security to the Yatris. Various line departments of the State government including health, PHE, CAPD and others are lending a helping hand to the Yatra.
As the official preparedness and arrangements for the smooth conduct of the Yatra are essential and needed, it must not be overlooked that it is the local Muslims who are in fact
shouldering the Yatra in line with the great spirit of secularism Kashmir has been famous and proud for.
Hundreds of potters, Ponywallahs, tea-stall owners, taxi and bus drivers besides those thousands of others who cheerfully greet the Yatris during their passage in the Valley are the real pillars of this centuries old pilgrimage.
Without hesitation, one must admit that local religious and political leaders have always supported the Yatra and despite their political and religious differences none among them has tried to play politics over the same. Religion is a highly personal and sensitive matter and faith is a matter of personal belief.
Young and old Yatris travel hundreds of miles, brave the vagaries of nature, infirmities of age and personal inconveniences to make it to the Holy Cave Shrine spending money and time. The people of the Valley have always stood behind those who come here to perform the Yatra.
During the last few days the Valley remained in a state of extreme shock over the destruction of the Peer Dastgeer Shrine in Khanyar in a mysterious fire incident. While everything came to a grinding halt, one thing that continued unabated and without any hassles has been the passage of the Yatris to the Cave Shrine. It has been encouraging to see that while life halted in the entire Valley, the local people ensured that no hardship is faced by the Yatris who come here in pursuit of their own faith.
Not only this, at places the people have even encouraged local bus and taxi drivers to continue their services to the Yatris while public transport remained completely closed in every nook and corner of the Valley. Those who tried to paint Kashmir with a communal brush have miserably failed, thanks to the secularism and upholding of great traditions by the Muslims of the Valley.
By this unique act of compassion, grace and secularism Kashmiris have once again earned immense respect in the rest of the country. From Maharashtra to Haryana across Jharkhand and Rajasthan, the goodwill for the people of Kashmir has increased a hundred fold.
Interestingly, this development coincided with the report mishandling of some Kashmiri students outside the State. Those who did that must hang their heads in shame. A Muslim or a Hindu student from Jammu and Kashmir has as much right to free education, personal freedom and co-existence outside the state as does a student belonging to any other state of India in his/her home state or elsewhere in the country.
Kashmir has once again held a beacon to the rest of the country and those who look upon local boys and girls with suspicious must do their arithmetic more carefully in the future. Indian secularism lives and breathes in the Valley perhaps more vibrantly than it does in those states where politicians wear badges of secularism just to win minority votes during elections. |
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