Opinion | The changed nature of Kashmiri Society

Kashmir is rightly claimed as “Heaven on Earth”. This quality is supplemented by the fact of its natural beauty, communal harmony and a tolerant society. From accounts of Kalhana to Vakhs of Lal Ded, Kashmir has been the centre of love, brotherhood and held a high place among rulers of the time. It has given world personalities from various fields who have proved their mettle time and space.

As the needle of clock moves, so moves a society towards development and prosperity. This movement along the development continuum is ensured by a society which has a capacity to learn, unlearn and relearn. Any society needs human and social capital to keep the wheel of civilization moving. In Kashmir, we are doing comparatively well on human capital but we are miserably failing on social capital.
For some time now, we are witnessing a decline in social capital in Kashmir manifested in growing intolerance, killing of minorities, rapes, acid attacks, suicides, drugs, divorces and sex rackets. The recent incidents of murder in Budgam, Kupwara (8 Yr old girl), Baramulla and Sex racket in Baghi Mehtab Srinagar send chills down the spine of society. One remains in conundrum after seeing such incidents happening in Kashmir, the so-called Heaven.
The killing of a daughter by her father, a mother by her son and butchering a girl into pieces is manifestation of failure of our society and Kashmiriyat as a whole. In September 2022, National Crime Records Bureau reported that the overall crime graph in J&K increased by 24.6% in 2021 as compared to 2019 data. As per NCRB data, suicide rate in Kashmir is higher than any other state. Around 290 people die every year by suicide. The other agent that eats up our society is drugs. The ORF Online portal says that 2.5% of Kashmiri population use drugs and has emerged as the country’s top drug affected region , ahead of Punjab. On an average, a Kashmiri drug abuser spends INR 88,000 yearly on drugs. The question arises who are we? Who performs these acts and what have we become? Why are there declining moral standards in Kashmir?
These incidents heavily dent our society both socially and economically. The rising crime rates may strain our tourism and put Kashmir in a bad image. The increasing usage of drugs destroys youth and makes them vulnerable to act in an illegal way. Drugs also hamper social relations and give a way to illicit trafficking and strengthen various non-state actors to perpetuate further crimes.
On deeper introspection, many causes may arise i.e unemployment, political turmoil, depression, financial issues and worsening personal relationships. However, a long term solution would require coordinated effort from various sections of society. These incidents put a moral obligation on us to come forwards and create a social debate on such issues. The responsibility of parents and family is to sort out issues in a peaceful manner and talk openly about such issues. The educational institutes can bring positive change in the mindset of students by exposing negative aspects of such activities. The religious heads have to be torchbearers in awakening society on such matters especially divorce and rights of religious minorities in Islam. Lord Hewart puts responsibility on State i.e “Justice must not only be done, but must also be seen to be done” Once each stakeholder fulfills their respective responsibility, then only changes can grow to make Kashmir once again a real heaven on earth.
– The writer, a Civil Service Aspirant, can be reached at akhtars20@gmail.com