Hilal Mir is a journalist based in Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian-administered Kashmir. He was formerly with India's leading newspaper, the Hindustan Times.
A community of nomads were barely touched by the decades of Kashmir conflict, but it all changed this Spring.
India has tightened the chokehold on Kashmiri journalists by deploying methods such as questioning at counterinsurgency centres, arbitrary arrests and invoking of anti-terror law.
Kashmiris skip obligatory prayers in mosques but hundreds attend funerals of insurgents.
The internet curbs imposed by New Delhi on disputed Kashmir is making it impossible for tens of thousands of people to work from home and combat the coronavirus threat.
The Hindu right wing reaps political dividends from the strategy of pre-planned 'rioting' against Muslims with state-assured impunity.
The International Committee of the Red Cross hasn’t been able to work in India-held Kashmir since it was stripped of its political autonomy on August 5, foreign aid workers are not being issued visas and Kashmiris are being left without support.
Before embarking on the mission of nullifying the semi-autonomous status of the disputed region, India arm-twisted its local press, forcing publishers to gag their leading opinion writers and columnists.
Recent violence targeted outsiders from mainland India entering the disputed Kashmir, a significant shift triggered by India's decision to reduce the semi-autonomous region into a New Delhi-ruled territory.
In video recorded interviews, the victims allege that the Indian army subjected them to immense physical pain and psychological pressure.
Even if the disputed region were to become a Shangri-La, it would be a Shangri-La manufactured by India with sheer military force and money.
By cutting off communication networks and pouring troops into the restive Muslim-majority state, India is preparing Kashmiris for an unprecedented escalation.
The Indian government has come under criticism for taking advantage of a spiritual journey to meet political ends.
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