J&K women told to keep veil, not to use mobile
Militants go Taliban way, threaten acid attack
Taking a cue from Taliban extremists, militants in Kashmir have threatened to throw acid on the faces of women who use mobile phones and don’t keep veil.
They have also warned members and heads of panchayats to quit the panchayats within a week.
Handwritten posters, bearing the stamp of hitherto unknown terror organisation “Al-Qaeda Mujahideen,” appearing in south Kashmir’s Shopian district, have warned women and girls to wear hijab and abstain from wearing provocative dresses “failing which they have to face acid attacks.”
“We appeal to the people to ensure purdah of their girls. They should not allow their girls to go out of their homes without purdah. If we spot any woman without purdah we will sprinkle acid on her face,” read the posters in Urdu.
The terror outfit also warned the girls to desist from using mobile phones. “If we spot any girl using mobile phone she will be shot dead instantly,” the posters read.Reports said the acid attack threats have sparked panic and fear among women in Shopian.
In late 1990s and early 2000s, militants had issued similar diktats asking women to follow the Islamic dress code. A few teenage girls were shot in the legs for wearing jeans and a pullover and not covering their hair. However, the diktats failed to yield any results.
The militants have also warned sarpanchs and panchs of dire consequences in case they do not resign within a week.
“If panchayat members will not to resign within a week and apologise publicly in mosques during the Friday congregational prayers, they will face dire consequences,” the militants threatened.
They have also ordered the panchayat members to make sure that their resignations appear in the local newspapers. “They (panchayat members) should also carry along the copies of the newspapers as we can visit any time to see the copies,” read the posters.
It further read that the panchayat system was not in accordance with the Islamic jurisprudence and hence not applicable in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
“This land belongs to Allah and we will make sure that nothing against His will happens here,” read the pamphlet.
Reports said on Friday, a ruling National Conference sarpanch and six Opposition People’s Democratic Party panches resigned following similar threats from militants in south Kashmir’s Tral.
It is for the first time that the group by the name of “Al Qaeda Mujahideen” has surfaced in Kashmir. No such group has existed in Jammu and Kashmir in the last 23 years of turmoil.
