As Afghanistan Reels
With the Taliban fast capturing Afghanistan, thousands are desperately seeking asylum abroad. The country is now left at the mercy of dreaded medieval Taliban terrorists. Fortunate are the women who have managed to flee Afghanistan. For the Taliban, the women exist only for progeny and no other role. This reminds me of how Islamist extremists, particularly Jamaat e Islami celebrated the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban in the past. They celebrated the Talibanization of Afghanistan as an anti-imperialist project. For them, the Taliban advancement was and continues to be a just war in the cause of Islam.
Jamaat e Islami is proscribed in Kashmir. Hence it shall not come out to give sermons calling upon people to celebrate the victory of Taliban and follow their path. But in the heart of hearts, they are happy over the happenings in Afghanistan.
The Descent In Kashmir
The retreat of the erstwhile USSR from Afghanistan in 1989 marked the transition of Kashmir valley from a composite pluralist society to an extremist exclusivist one. The events that unfolded after the pullout of the USSR from Afghanistan had a direct impact on the Kashmir situation. The Afghan warlords were made out to be heroes. They became the centrifugal force in transforming Kashmir. How the decline impacted the progressive Afghanistan society was never discussed. Jamaat e Islami used the Afghan theatre as a shiny new play to entice the Kashmiris with. They made the Afghan story some kind of utopia that Kashmir should aspire for.
While the bizarre of Afghanistan was wrapped in fantasy for Kashmir, Afghan women were forced to become sex slaves for the Taliban. Tragically, Afghan history is repeating all over again. As the Taliban surge forward, Afghan women, particularly the educated ones, are fearful for their life and modesty. With the noise of roaring guns, hearts sink, the chest becomes heavy, knees bend and eyes lose the ability to see. Only the Afghan women know what Taliban-controlled Afghanistan shall mean for them. The return of Taliban will be celebrated only by those with a medieval mindset. They too shall be responsible for whatever is in store for a Talibanized Afghanistan.
Vicious, Savage Terrorists Presented As Role Models For Kashmir Society
Jamaat e Islami, as a theological fountainhead, called upon Kashmiris to wage a sacred war against secular democratic India to establish the Caliphate. As usual, the Jamaat cadres shall deny their involvement in any such emotive exploitative provocations. There are hundreds of audio-visuals and written articles where the jubilant Jamaat leadership provoked the Kashmiris to follow the path of Afghan mujahideen.
In their official mouthpiece Azaan, Jamaat writers and orators instigate the younger Kashmiris to go the Afghan way. Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and then ISI chief General Hamid Gul were the two most favorite heroes for Jamaat e Islami in Kashmir. They would raise slogans like Tera Yaar Mera Yaar, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. Supernatural acts of Afghan mujahideen were narrated to Kashmiris in mosques. They were made to believe that Gulbuddin and other mujahideen destroyed tanks of enemies by throwing handfuls of sand towards them. This indoctrination was the turning point in the history of Kashmir. Violence erupted.
