Around 50 students of Aligarh Muslim University held a silent protest at the university canteen over the situation in Jammu & Kashmir. A statement by the students said that they wanted to show solidarity with the “politically disempowered” people of Kashmir who have been held under stringent restrictions for over two months.
“We approached the Proctor on October 12 for permission to organise an art exhibition on October 15 as in the past show-cause notice was issued to four students for holding protest without permission. We were shocked when we were denied permission and decided to hold a silent protest,” said Mohd. Nihad, a BA student who participated in the protest.
Hailing from Kerala, Mr. Nihad said students from different States on the campus came together for the protest. “We demand that the Kashmir issue be resolved peacefully and democratically as per the will of the people.”
Bilal Majid, a PhD scholar from Kashmir, said it was heartening to see non-Kashmiri students giving a call for a peaceful protest on the issue. “The situation is still far from normal in the Valley. Of course, postpaid mobiles have started working but the move is going to help government officials more than the common citizens. There is still widespread resentment and it could swell after the apple harvesting season gets over,” Mr. Majid said.
AMU Proctor Afifullah Khan confirmed that he had denied permission for the exhibition as it seemed like a “political move” that could have led to a “law and order problem”. However, he added that he was not aware of any protest on campus on Tuesday.
