Dear,.......,
Hello. I am here again with my narrative after the weekly break. Last time I narrated the story of my tough time with my boss. Then I described Boss No: 2 too. I gave you details of six Assistant Engineers. I heard about a seventh one too but he had been posted to AIR Lucknow. He was called GMD - short name for Gulam Mohi Din. He was a completely uneducated person. He did not know to read and write any language. He would just speak kashmiri and could also converse in urdu intermixed with kashmiri. He would somehow communicate with non-Kashmiri speaking persons. He would sign in english language as G.M.D. I was told that he was a good workman and would have innovative methods to solve mechanical problems. Some day, he seemed to have impressed a senior officer and he had recommended him to be promoted as Assistant Engineer from the post of technician. I met him face to face in 1981 when he was posted to the same office where I was already working. I will describe him in detail when my narrative would progress to the year 1981. Right now I am in the 1960's. .
Kashmir was a place where we would find unrest and agitations touching various issues at least two to three times a year. It so happened that there started one around June/July 1967. That year the first super store started in Kashmir valley. It was called Super Bazar. This was the first time that different items were available under one roof. The items were cheaper than in the general market. The store was under the ownership of the government. Young boys and girls of all section of the society were working as salesmen and sales ladies there. One day there was a rumor that one Muslim boy and one Hindu girl working in the store had married in the court, a stones throw throw distant from the store. The two had gone to the boy's house from the court. The atmosphere got charged in the city. The administration was alarmed and took control immediately. Both the boy and the girl were detained at the local police station at Maharaj Gunj near the place of residence of the boy. The girl named Parmeshwari was a resident of Rainawari area and was living with her mother. Her father had deceased some years earlier.
At the Police station, both the boy and the girl said that both of them were adults and they had taken the decision to marry on their own. the police checked their educational documents etc. and it was clear to the police that they could not keep them detained at the police station. The documents clearly mentioned their adult status. Even then, the police got her checked at the local hospital where they also confirmed that she was an adult. The administration, called the Hindu leadership and put forth all the facts at their disposal. But the Hindu leadership had been under pressure to solve their other problems like encroachments on their temple lands etc. thought this to be an opportunity to start with this as an issue. Then leadership wanted the girl to be reunited with her mother. It was later known that the boy had been regularly going to their home at Rainawari for months and her mother knew the boy too. It was also known later that the Hindu leadership was allowed to meet the girl at the police station and talk to her but she did not agree to go to her mother. Unfortunately the Hindu leadership did not tell the public all this. Next day, they announced an agitation. Every day, there would be a demonstration at 4 PM. There would be speeches and seven young people would court arrest. No place of demonstration would get announced in advance but it would take place at random places and there would be seven young men who would be arrested everyday. And all this was happening with curfew in the city. The administration was at their wits end. They made efforts to unravel the agitation control center and the leadership behind the agitation. Some of the local Hindu informants were rewarded for clues to the agitation leadership. The leaders were caught and jailed. The agitation died down after about two weeks of unrest. During the agitation, the leadership raised other issues too that had been affecting the community. There would be fierce speeches. A number of young people got killed during firing by police on the demonstrations. The administration opened a dialogue with the Hindu leadership and it was agreed to appoint a commission to address the issues raised by them. The government announced a commission under Mr. Gajandergadkar a Supreme court judge to look into the grievances of the Hindu community. The commision took some time and the report was submitted to the government. The Hindu leadership had complained about jobs, promotions and admission in professional institutions as main issues. The commission announced in its report that Hindus were already getting more than its dues in all the spheres. As a result of this report, we Hindus lost and suffering got enhanced.
Meanwhile, the Muslim community got a kick to their fortunes and their spirits soared after the report. Muslims at that point of time would not be getting educated generally and most of them were into business. They would not be in government. But the commission changed all that. Parmeshwari became Parmeshwari Akhtar. The celebrations in her household continued for moths. There would be a mela outside their house everyday. Muslim ladies would visit her and gift her with gold sovereigns. This was the usual ritual with Muslims in those times to gift the bride with gold sovereigns. And more and more Muslims got educated. They started going for the jobs which they had never thought of ever imagining.
I was able to go to office during the agitation. We the shift staff would be issued with curfew passes. We would be allowed by the patrolling police to move freely.
Bye for today. Shall be there again tomorrow with a new blog.
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