Srinagar: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, National Conference president Farooq Abdullah, and People’s Conference president Sajad Gani Lone paid tributes to those who laid down their lives protesting against the rule of Dogra Maharaja Hari Singh in 1931.
According to a NC spokesperson, the leaders describe the sacrifice of the ‘martyrs’ as a defining chapter in Jammu and Kashmir’s struggle for justice, dignity and democratic rights.
“July 13 remains a historic watershed that ignited a mass movement against autocracy, oppression and injustice in the erstwhile princely state,” the spokesperson said.
Farooq Abdullah said the sacrifice made by the protestors continues to inspire generations in the pursuit of justice, truth and peace.
“The undying thirst for dignity cannot be suppressed by injustice. The July 13 martyrs proved that perseverance and the spirit of peaceful resistance ultimately triumph over tyranny. I pay my humble tributes to these brave souls and appeal especially to our youth to remain connected with the history of our collective struggle,” he said.
Chief Minister Abdullah said the lives laid down on July 13 would forever symbolise humanity’s unwavering quest for dignity, justice and fundamental rights.
“I pay my humble tributes to our great martyrs who laid down their lives to challenge autocratic rule. Their sacrifice marked a turning point that awakened generations to rise against injustice. July 13 will always remind us of the enduring power of unity, compassion and peaceful resistance in the face of oppression,” he said.
Launching a scathing attack on the NC government, People’s Conference president Sajad Gani Lone accused the party of relegating history to irrelevance while substituting governance with political spectacle.
“This government has made no sincere effort to restore this public holiday, honouring the sacrifice of our native heroes. It has chosen theatre over truth, rhetoric over resolve and in doing so, has turned its back on history itself,” he said.
Lone asserted that collective memory cannot be extinguished through executive decrees.
“No government order can erase what a people choose to remember,” he said, adding that the restoration of July 13 as a public holiday is not a concession but a long-overdue obligation rooted in historical justice.
Restoring the day as a public holiday, he said, would transcend symbolism.
July 13 used to be a public holiday in Jammu and Kashmir before the reorganisation of the erstwhile state into two Union territories in August 2019. A state function would be held every year to honour the ‘martyrs’.
However, the administration dropped the day from the list of gazetted holidays in 2020.
PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti accused the BJP of turning the issue of the ‘martyrs’ of 1931 into a communal matter, saying those killed by the Dogra Maharaja’s soldiers sacrificed their lives fighting the “autocratic rule”.
The former chief minister paid tributes to the 22 protestors, who died on this day in 1931, at the PDP headquarters here.
The authorities had placed restrictions around the martyr’s graveyard in Naqshband Sahib area of the city to prevent people, including politicians, from paying their tributes.
Speaking to reporters at the party office, Mehbooba Mufti said 22 Kashmiris sacrificed their lives outside Srinagar Central Jail against the “autocratic rule”.
“They raised their voice against the autocratic rule of that time, its oppression and tyranny, and awakened our nation,” she said.
Drawing parallels with Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Rajguru, and Ashfaqullah Khan, Mehbooba Mufti said while the people of Kashmir acknowledge and respect their sacrifices, the BJP has turned the issue of the martyrs of 1931 into a communal issue.
“As far as the sacrifice of Kashmiris is concerned, the BJP has made it a Hindu-Muslim issue, it has made it a Dogra-Kashmiri issue, it has made it a Jammu-Kashmir issue. Our elders raised their voice against the autocratic rule at that time and sacrificed themselves,” she said.
Asserting that the BJP cannot put restrictions on the minds of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, the PDP president said “these martyrs awakened our nation, and laid the foundation for the people’s rule that we see today”.
“So, even if the BJP tries harder, it won’t be able to control our minds. They are our heroes. Just like Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Ashfaqullah Khan, and Gandhi ji are. Just as (Nathuram) Godse is the hero of BJP, these people who were martyred in 1931 for the sake of the people’s rule, they are our martyrs and will remain so, no matter how many restrictions they impose, no matter how many barbed wires they put up,” she added.
Terming the restrictions as an “excess done by the BJP”, Mehbooba Mufti claimed she was placed under house arrest on Sunday while Naqshband Sahib area was completely sealed and checkpoints were put up on Monday.
“I think this is an excess by the BJP, they should not do this. If they cannot respect our martyrs, then at least they should not stop us from paying tribute to them,” she said.
Mehbooba’s daughter, Iltija Mufti also accused the BJP of trying to “distort” and “erase” J&K’s history.
“The police is not even allowing us to take few steps outside (the party office). They want to erase and distort our history. This Martyr’s day is not illegal, it is not seditious. These are the people who sacrificed their lives, it is because of them that democracy came to Jammu and Kashmir. They raised their voice against the injustice done by Dogra rulers, it is because of them that the seeds of democracy were sown,” Iltija said.
She said the party leaders were “imprisoned”, but they did not want to break any law.
“I want to tell the LG and the administration here that you cannot erase or rewrite our history. The people of Kashmir will themselves decide who their heroes or villains are. The martyr’s are heroes for us, and we will always salute them and their spirit,” she said.
