Representational Image

In the recent past, we have witnessed a lot of thought provoking events & developments in Kashmir. We got to know about the atrocities like fake encounters, extra-judicial killings at the hands of some cruel Indian security forces.

We learnt about the web of corruption & the sale of ministerial seats in the pro-Indian political parties. We read about inadequate traffic police & defective roads leading to increasing number of road accidents which consequently lead to rapid rate of untimely deaths.

We heard of the covert plan of the state government to settle non-state subjects here. We also believe that faith was sold at Rs. 5000 to Christian Missionaries. Last, but not the least, we saw unknown, unmarked mass graves particularly in the border areas of Kashmir.

Having witnessed all this, we still managed to live a relatively peaceful summer. I don't know why. May be because our conscience is dead. May be we consider it normal now. May be it is something we would have to face untill Kashmir remains to be a dispute.

In, almost, all these cases, we have to fight for justice against some external force. But if there's a social evil equal in gravity and responsible for forcing the lives of our sisters to a miserable state, shouldn't we, atleast, fight it out. And, especially if it is something that we can eradicate without fighting against an external force but against our own self.

I am talking about 'Eve Teasing' - public sexual harassment / molestation of women through sexually suggestive remarks. The evil act is termed as Eve Teasing, albeit many feminist writers term it as "Little Rapes".

Who Is Responsible?
Eve teasing is mostly witnessed at Public places, Public transport, Streets, Coacing Centres et cetera. Pertinently, Coaching Centres in Kashmir often feature in newspapers for wrong reasons such as the growing menace of eve teasing. If we ponder over it, we will find that there isn't a single cause but a host of them.

The culprits are mostly from economically poor & socially backward families. For them, practices like playing loud music, capturing pictures on mobile phones while following a girl, indulging in 'Gang Wars', showing-off flashy accessories are their 'Charm'.

Parents also turn into an accomplice through carelessness. Escorting their daughter to places like Coaching Centres is seen as the last option.

Bollywood has always been at the fore-front in promoting 'Roadside Romeos'. By chance, if it is a 'Villain' acting such a practise, a 'Hero' immediately appears, beats the villain to save the victim which is quite contrary to the reality.

Indian soaps have also used this social evil as a bait to attract more & more audience & viewership. The best example being "Pratigya" - serial featuring on Star Plus.

Being the highest militarised zone with 'lawless' laws, 'security forces' also indulge in such acts in Kashmir. These molestations often go unreported for fear of reprisal & exposure to public shame.

Writing On The Wall:
Although, Indian Penal Code 298 (A) & (B) prescribes 3 months prison and if repeated, 5 years prison with a fine of Rs. 5000 while refering to the social crime as equable to obscene gestures, remarks or even songs, we still need to do a lot more.

If the law would have been enough, then Delhi - capital of India, wouldn't have been refered to as 'one of the world's dangerous places for women'.

The fact that eve-teasing is one of the main causes for increasing rate of female suicides in contemporary societies, we need to act fast rather than playing "wait & see".

A few of my suggestions would be to:

• Empower the organisations like National Commission for Women (NCW) so that justice would be delivered to the victims at the earliest.
• Police officers, especially females, should be stationed in plain clothes at places often in complaint.
• Special Anti-eve-teasing Cells should be established to confront the menace in an effective manner.
• The employers in the valley should allow female employees to leave at 4 pm or arrange adequate transport facility for them so that they can reach home before its too dark especially in Winters.

Parents should shun the indifferent behaviour towards their wards. They should, rather, keep a vigil on their activites.

Ulema also have a role to play in curbing this social crime. Besides, delivering sermons & speeches, they should encourage people for setting up of 'Mohalla Committee' in each and every locality for the very act of arresting & bringing the culprits to book. That will surely help in bringing an end to this ever growing social evil.

All these measures would be helpful only if we change our attitude towards this social evil and recognise this fact that our own daughters or sisters can be safe if we prevent the matter from getting bad to worse. Perhaps, education and educational institutions can play a better role in this regard.

Representational Image

Leaving for college, I heard from my friend about the killing of a teenage boy in Wagum. My initial reaction was similar to how I take a normal death. The words, "Ina-lillahi-wa-inna-elihi-rajaoon" slipped from my lips as is the norm.

While heading towards college so as to join the company of our friends after summer vacations, we saw a large crowd of people assembled in the premises of District Hospital, Pulwama (known to the locals as "Nouw Haspataal" - new hospital).

I usually don't feel the urge to know the nature and object of interest for the crowds in the market-place and elsewhere that come by my way. I don't know why but this one was, somehow, appealing. I told my friend, Wasim, to accompany me inside the hospital premises.

And, as we got inside, it turned out to be a mourning people waiting for doctors to hand over to them the body of slain youth from Wagum.

To be honest, we had left for college to have a chat with buddies, forget attending lectures as striking contractual teachers were the only ones who taught us all the five subjects. On reaching there, a bevy of girls standing outside the college gate gave us the impression that we won't be allowed inside as we were late. Hah! Quite unusual on part of the college gate-keeping staff.

What to do now? I had to get some notes from Javed, Wasim's cousin, who incidently lives in Wagum. So instead of college, we left for Wagum. We were about to reach the main gate, Javed came out. He had seen us through the window of his room.

Suddenly, my thoughts were engulfed by the fate the teenage boy had met whom Javed called as "Sahabã". Javed himself knew a very little about the poor boy. So, after talking about our academics, taking notes, bla bla bla . . . we planned to visit the house of the deceased.

The lanes leading to the house of "Sahabã" presented a very deserted and gloomy look. I felt like walking through a spell of awe. Footsteps seemed to land me nowhere. The entire village was mourning. Happiness seemed to have renounced the locality. Police, being given the task of guarding the killer's house, was roaming the streets and lanes.

In all this, we managed to reach the mosque of the locality. After ablution there, we saw an ambulance that appeared suddenly. Stopping the vehicle halfway, the driver asked the people inside to take the 'dead body' away.

Pain, extreme pain gripped my heart. Nay! It was not a 'dead', it was a martyr, an innocent boy who had become the victim of a cruel, materialistic neighbour's assault. The people, whom driver refered to, were an extremely grieved lot. It was a lady, a man with beard. The duo was wailing. "Waagmis ha lõg naãr", the lady cried out in a heartaching tone.

In a blink of an eye, hundreds of people started rushing with the young martyr's body towards the home of deceased which was now resounding with the cries of pain. Wailing women were reminding the days he was alive! How he used to leave for tutions! How he used to talk to them! Some of them, centainly who were very close to the teen, were promising a possible revenge. The slain youth's sister jumped over the wall to set the 'house of killers' on fire even.

It was after the 'Nimazi Jinnazah' that I came to know the real identity of the slain youth from a friend hailing from the very locality. He disclosed to me that the victim's name was Danish Ahmad Ganaie and his father, Farooq Ahmad Ganaie, works as an employee at ITI, Pulwama. He was nicknamed as 'Sahabã'. It was revealed to me that he took tutions at BCI, Pulwama as I saw a few of the teachers from the institute there to condole with the grieved family.

I didn't personally knew him but, somehow, I was compelled to visit his home. I personally felt so very grieved, deprived and humiliated that I was unable to sleep for the whole night. I couldn't bring myself to face the reality.

I don't believe that a human being can become so cruel at times. A land dispute can turn your neighbour into a gory murderer.

Keeping in mind that quarrel had erupted over the edge of the neighbour's lawn where a cemented base of wall was under construction, it's pathetic to note that the man-turned-murderer fled from his house along with other family members to save their lives, leaving the whole of their property, ofcourse including the area of dispute, to the mercy of local people's patience after the henious crime.

Now, he would try everything to save himself. Even if he has to sell his house, his whole lot of property simply because these things don't have any value for him now. Materialistic-man-turned-a-killer earlier, would plead mercy. It's an eye-opener for us. We need to be patient in the most heated arguments.

For Danish (may his soul rest in peace), now a close friend to me because of his unjust demise, I now remember that:

I'm prepared to face anyone because I have not done anything wrong. Music has brought me peace, it has brought me calm - Mohammad Muneeb (Highway 61 - Alif)

When I hear such statements coming from none but our own muslim brothers, I just don't believe it. Infact, I'm shocked to know that a muslim, who has been forbidden to listen to music as being 'Haraam', is propagating the tool of lucifer.

How could you ask a muslim to pay 'Zakat' if he says that he isn't in peace in giving away a little part of his wealth to the needy! What if a youngester finds peace in a liqueur shop instead of a mosque! What will you have to say when a lad has veneration for so called "King Khan" rather than for the 'Sahaba' - companions of our beloved Prophet Mohammad (S.A.W)!

A muslim must find peace in Islam rather than outside it because in the guise of peace, he indulges in evil and pleasurable things and his inclination for worldly things grows more and more, especially if there are secular elements to 'protect' and 'support' him.

Islam means submission to Almight Allah and His commandments. A believer can't, in any way, challenge His instructions and if he does, then does he still be called a Muslim.

To be honest, I'm not interested in counting the faults of someone but to get the message across that to be a sinner, in the light of Holy Quran and Hadeeth, is obviously not good but to justify one's sin is the worst thing one is expected to do.

I'm myself suffering from a web of sins. I too watch movies and listen to babel (music). But instead of being a hypocrite, I admit my sins and pray to Allah to help me relinquish them.

I personally believe that the solution to the most complex questions lies in simple things. For instance, I often start my activities with the words "Bismillah" (in the name of Allah). This simple but powerful line helps me to introspect my about-to-do deed to understand the nature of it.

I feel guilty if it confronts the religious guidance and try to forgo it next time but i feel joyful and confident if it has the religious approval and naturally, my tendency towards the good deed develops with each and every passing day.

All in all, I have still a lot to do so as to get myself out of the trap of evil and irreligious influences which have robbed me off my staunch inclination towards Islam - the peaceful religion for universal humanity and brotherhood.

As far as my fellow muslim brothers are concerned, who are also chained in secular, irreligious influence and acts of moral waywardness, my write-up may not happen to change their minds and perception but let me tell them what an unbeliever named Aldous Huxley had to say. He said, "The end cannot justify the means, for the simple and obvious reason that the means employed determine the nature of the ends produced".

I guess this is ample for those who, in the guise of noble cause, indulge in immoral act and thus contribute to the growing social evils in our society.

The writing on the wall is quite clear. We ought to throw out the menace of secularism out of our land and for that we have to start the process from our own selves as 'charity begins at home'.

It's the time to re-think about how sincere we are inside the mosque and outside it. The time has come to choose between good and evil. Time to call a spade a spade. Time to be straight-forward. Time to desist from using religion and noble ends for self-centered interests of fame and following. Precisely, its high time to be selfless.