Moon Desk: In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, India is using physical, mental and psychological torture at a large scale as a tool to prolong its illegal hold on Kashmir and to suppress the Kashmiris’ righteous and just demand for right to self-determination.
A report released by the Research Section of Kashmir Media Service on the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, today, revealed that Indian troops during their unabated acts of state terrorism martyred 96,211 Kashmiris including 7,297 in custody and fake encounters since January 1989 till date.India continues to use torture as a state policy by which people of Jammu and Kashmir continue to face horrific forms of torture at the hands of Indian forces in the internationally recognised disputed territory.
The report maintained that 683 women have been martyred by the troops and paramilitary forces since January 2001 till date. It pointed out that womenfolk constitutes the majority of the Kashmiris suffering from multiple psychic problems and mental torture.The report said that Indian troops and police personnel arrested 168,009 Kashmiris, including women and children, during crackdowns and military operations since 1989 till date. “These arrested people were physically and mentally tortured by the Indian army, paramilitary and police personnel in different interrogation centers, police stations and jails. The use of torture by the troops has been widespread and indiscriminate in occupied Jammu and Kashmir,” it said.
The report revealed that India is using torture as a tool of suppression against to create fear psychosis, mental & psychological torture at a large scale to prolong its illegal hold on Jammu and Kashmir.It pointed out that womenfolk constitute the majority of the Kashmiris suffering from multiple psychic problems and mental torture. “Due to unending agony, Kashmiri widows, half widows are suffering from psychological and other problems. As per a study, women comprise more than 60% of psychiatric patients in IIOJK,” it added.
The report pointed out that the life of the people of occupied Kashmir has become a living hell since August 05, 2019, when the Narendra Modi-led Hindutva BJP government repealed the special status of IIOJK by violating international laws and placed it under military siege. “Occupied Kashmir has been turned into the world’s largest prison and military state by India,” it said.The report said, India is carrying out the genocide of Kashmiris for the past over seven decades and the killing spree witnessed a massive surge since August 05, 2019. Kashmiri youth are picked up from their homes, killed in fake encounters and in custody and buried at unknown locations, it said.
The report said that India should allow unconditional access to international human rights organizations to IIOJK to assess the prevailing human rights situation in the territory. New Delhi should also ratify the UN Convention against Torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment, it said.
The report maintained that despite facing India’s worst kind of torture and nefarious tactics, Kashmiris are determined to take their freedom movement to its logical conclusion. It said that the world community, particularly the UN must take cognizance of New Delhi’s brutal actions in IIOJK and come forward in a big way to save the Kashmiris from the Indian atrocities.
