Do you think we have rights ?

Birds and animals have rights, what about humans?

Turmoil of the past more than two decades has left many scars for the people of this region. While economically other regions - particularly Jammu - witnessed progress by leaps and bounds, Kashmir lagged behind not only in business and seeking its due share in Government employment but lost many natural resources also at the hands of locals as well as outsiders who could loot at will. Forests ( that is called green gold) were vandalised and precious timber smuggled who so ever could do it.

We have been able to coin new words on the legal front. Nowhere in the world shall we come across a term like ` undeclared curfew’ except in Kashmir. People have become acquainted with it so much that they do not object when restrictions are imposed under 144 Cr. P. C which means only five or more people can not assemble together. Likewise when leaders give call for protest it is implied we have to go for shutdown called hartal otherwise the word protest has many forms to demonstrate.

The second unique feature is unaccounted house arrest of some prominent leaders with impunity.

What prompted me to write these lines is to realise that birds and animals in India can enjoy more rights than our leaders not to talk of others who can bank upon judicial protection. In a landmark judgment Hon’ble Justice Manmohan Singh of Delhi High Court has held that birds have a Fundamental right to fly as such can neither be caged nor sold as commercial commodity. This unique judgment came in case titled people for Animals. V/ s Md.

Mohazzim. Birds may not have written constitutional guarantees or lawyers to be engaged to protect them, yet they have found the judicial protection while some of our leaders despite written Fundamental rights are not as lucky as the birds and animals have been found to be.

Any system can run and survive on faith coupled with fairness, without being arbitrary, discriminatory and should be transparent.

When double standards are adopted in any respect you can manage for sometime through tricks and manoeuvrings, but ultimate it has to crumble down. Passport issue has been turned into a national issue when it was not an issue in 2007 when Mr. Geelani got it. Other leaders have been travelling abroad from time to time who too belong to same camp then why it became issue for him. When the court gives verdict birds have fundamental right to fly why not Geelani. Do Indian birds enjoy more rights than human beings in Kashmir.

Bekhudi besabab nahi Ghalib Kuch to hai jiski pardadari hai.