Kashmir a prison under military control, say activists back from Valley

The activists said the Valley was on the edge and could erupt in protests as and when the authorities lift the curfew

Four prominent activists, who returned after spending five days travelling across the Kashmir Valley, have said the Centre and the state government have turned the region into “a prison under military control”.

In a report released on Wednesday, the activists said Indian media’s claims of Kashmir being peaceful were “grossly misleading”. They said common people were seething, distrust against New Delhi had increased, which has marginalized “pro-India parties” and strengthened the hands of separatists.

The activists said forces have been “arbitrarily” picking up hundreds of schoolboys and teenagers, who are being illegally detained and women and girls complained that they were being molested during raids by forces.

There is a clampdown on the local media, Kashmiri television channels are not telecasting, and newspapers functioning under tremendous restrictions, they said.

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