Shabir Ahmad
Mohammad Yasin Malik is the hard core separatist Leader who is currently the Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) which advocates the complete separation of Jammu and Kashmir state from both India and Pakistan, in order to be an independent and sovereign state as it existed before 1947.
Being one of the founding members of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), which was at the forefront of militancy in 1989, gives Malik an important place in the current movement in Kashmir. Currently, the JKLF is a key member of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC). Malik still lives in the same old home that he has lived in since childhood, never feeling the need to move to a house in a safer environment, it still did reflect the simple living that Malik professes to follow.
Mohammad Yasin Malik was born on 15 April 1966 in the densely populated Maisuma locality of Srinagar. Malik has witnessed the wreath, havoc violence carried out by the security forces in the streets of Maisuma and Srinagar city. Malik has graduated from S.P College Srinagar. He has acquired most of his knowledge by self-taught methods while he served his time in various jails. Malik loves the poetry of Allama Iqbal and the writings of Imam Gazali.
The atrocities of Indian Army upon the innocent Kashmiri’s during 1980’s in front of his own eyes when he was mere 14 years old convinced him that Kashmiri’s were not free and this sparked his entry into the “freedom movement”. Living under the repressive rule of the Army is suffocating and ultimately led to his taking up the arms, and now all that he dreamt of is freedom. Living in the same Mohalla made him feel at home, because in the Mohalla, every child was everyone’s child.
In the notorious elections of 1987 the Islamic Students League (ISL) led by Yasin Malik joined the Muslim United Front (MUF). It did not contest any seat because it did not believe in the constitution. But it took responsibility for campaigning for the MUF in all Srinagar constituencies. According to a spokesman of the Jamaat-e-Islami, all the parties that joined in the MUF were either pro-independence or pro-self-determination. According to Jamaat member, the ISL was recruited into the MUF to provide “street power” to counter the “hooliganism” of the National Conference, then ruling party.
Malik campaigned for the MUF candidate Mohammad Yusuf Shah who stood for the 1987 elections from AmiraKadal, Srinagar. As the vote counting began, it had became clear that Yusuf Shah was winning by a landslide. However, the opposing National Conference candidate Ghulam Mohiuddin Shah was declared the winner. Yusuf Shah as well as Yasin Malik were arrested by the police and imprisoned until the end of 1987 without a formal charge, court appearance or a trial. Widespread rigging and “booth-capturing” in the elections were reported. The police refused to listen to any complaint. The National Conference-Congress alliance was declared the winner with 62 seats in the Assembly, and formed the government.
After release from prison, Yusuf Shah called himself “Syed Salah Uddin” and became a freedom fighter, eventually becoming the commander-in-chief of the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen. The rigged election of 1987 is seen by most scholars as the trigger for Kashmir insurgency. Malik disagrees and says that 1987 elections didn’t result in armed militancy. Kashmir freedom struggle was there even before 1987.
Malik renounced violence in 1994 and adopted peaceful methods to come to a settlement on the Kashmir conflict. Malik adopted a Gandhian non-violent struggle for independence. He expressed a desire for a “democratic approach” involving the “true representatives” of Jammu and Kashmir. He offered political negotiations, but insisted they must be tripartite with both Indian and Pakistani governments and should cover the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir. This was unacceptable to the Indian government. In the Spring of 1995, Malik protested the holding of Legislative Assembly elections in 1995 and threatened to immolate himself. He contended that the Indian government has “thrust this election process” on the Kashmiris just as a display of democracy.
Malik strongly believes that for viable talks, Kashmiris have to be made a party to the talks. “Without that, no solution will be acceptable to the Kashmiri people. You cannot thrust a solution on me nor can I thrust a solution on you. Everyone has to come to the table, with their own agendas. Then let the people of Kashmir see whether they can agree on something or not. The Indian Government knows their case is very weak, that is why they are not willing to come to the table.
The Indian Government, due to its domestic compulsions, is simply trying to stall the talks till the next elections. They want to show they’ve put an end to militancy in Kashmir and that is why tourists are pouring in.
In October 1999, Malik was arrested by Indian Authorities under the Public Safety Act and was again arrested on March 26, 2002 under the Prevention of Terrorism Act; he was detained for almost a year.
In recent times, Malik has had one-on-one meetings with President of Pakistan, Prime Minister of Pakistan, Prime Minister of India and other world leaders. In 2007, Malik and his party launched a campaign known as Safar-i-Azadi (Journey of Freedom). His journeys to meet some select world leaders was to create an atmosphere of anti-Indian sentiment among the public; which had lasted for over one year. During this time Yasin Malik and his colleagues visited about 3,500 towns and villages of Kashmir promoting freedom struggle. Malik was thrown out of a hotel in New Delhi with his wife and 18-month-old daughter due to his political Ideology of separatism in December 2013. On January 12, 2016 Yasin Malik wrote a letter to Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, opposing Gilgit-Baltistan’s merger with Pakistan.
Malik believes that India has been non-committal about solving the Kashmir issue. India always maintained that it will not talk to Pakistan before the violence which is now being termed as “cross-border terrorism” ended. Coming to the table to talk is very important to look at the prospects of a viable solution to the Kashmir problem. But whenever Kashmir returned to peace, it is Indian government that refuses to start talking. Malik believes that If India continues to stall like this, the violence will erupt again and cause extensive destruction. The Indian Government has to realize this. Coming to the table is essential as “only once you come to the table, can you put forward your respective agendas and see what common ground you can arrive at”.
Malik is confident that India cannot ignore or sideline Kashmir issue for long. “The martyrs’ graveyards here in the Valley cannot just be forgotten”. They haven’t laid their lives down for nothing; their sacrifices and efforts can’t go to waste. Malik believes that since the issue cannot be sidelined, India has to accede to the demands of people of Kashmir whether now or a few years later.
Mohammad Yasin Malik has spared most of life in different Jails of India. It is pertinent to mention here that Government of India has recently banned Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front and has arrested Malik citing reasons of terror funding and waging war against State. Malik is currently under NIA custody and has been placed under notorious PSA and shifted to Tihar Jail where his condition is said to be very critical due to his indefinite hunger strike. His spouse , Mushaal Malik and daughter Razia Sultana are very much worried about him who are currently in Pakistan.
The precious sacrifices given by the JKLF Leader Mohammad Yasin Malik cannot be neglected. He has never slept peacefully even on single night. He and his family has always been thrashed by security forces. He has undergone many severe interrogations of security forces which has damaged his bones and nerves seriously. Unlike, Political leaders of Jammu and Kashmir, Malik has never changed his opinion about the Kashmir issue.
The Author is a Freelance Writer and Socio-political Analyst and can be reached at sahilshabir@rocketmail.com
