Posters supporting HM, LeT come up across Valley, urge people to continue agitation

India’s security establishment, which has been surprised by the ease with which militants are drawing support in the Kashmir Valley, particularly in the most violence-hit areas of south Kashmir, might want to take a look at a series of posters put up by the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM), urging people to continue their agitation till the time freedom is achieved.

The posters have been pasted outside houses and mosques in different parts of Kashmir, particularly in areas of South Kashmir like Pulwama and Anantang. Residents said they woke up on Saturday to see the posters coming up in several major areas including Kareemabad and Kakpora areas of South Kashmir.

The militant outfits have asked the people to live by Islamic principles and advised them to carry out Jihad. Besides the posters, they have also printed out banners showing militants in army fatigues, which are also dotting different areas of South Kashmir. Songs eulogising the militancy are also being played from mosques.

“It is really surprising that despite security restrictions and complete shutdown, they have managed to print out banners showing slain HM commander Burhan Wani,” said a security official. The youth are keeping pictures of militants holding guns in the forest areas and the under construction houses, while banners of the militants are being spotted at graveyards.

Through posters issued by the outfit’s divisional commander, the LeT has asked government employees not to report for work and has told women to not venture out of their houses without any valid reason. “All people should offer prayers, and our mothers and sisters shouldn’t venture out of their houses without any valid reason,” read the LeT poster.

The LeT has also warned people of dire consequences if they consume liquor. “People should also help out their neighbours who have been affected or are in dire financial need,” the LeT said.

However, senior superintendent of police (SSP) in Pulwama, Rayees Mohammad Bhat, said that the authenticity of the posters is being looked into. “They could have been issued by the local miscreants to create hysteria,” he said.

The HM and LeT have both asked people to live by Islamic principles and warned them against spreading rumours about the militants. The LeT has also blamed Indian intelligence agencies for spreading rumours that the militants have been “poisoned”. Giving a call for Jihad, the LeT has said that people should work towards establishing a Caliphate.

“People should fight with the same fervour that the Prophet Mohammad induced in his companions. Anti-Islam movements have to be uprooted and the fervour of Jihad will strengthen even a weak person. People should live with amity and collect vegetables, rice and oil and hand it over to people who’ve come from Srinagar,” the poster read.

The HM, while paying tributes to the slain militant commander Burhan Wani, has noted that India is “trying to crush the freedom struggle of Kashmir”. The militant outfit has added that despite the excesses by India, people of Kashmir have “sacrificed” their lives. Asking people to remain steadfast in their struggle for freedom, the HM has urged them to continue their ongoing agitation.

“The people who keep the flame of hope burning amid the darkness of pathos become victorious. In the life of a nation, time comes when everyone is forced to rise against the enemy. Like the young boys and the elderly men, women and even children have to take up guns. Today, the women also have to give their blood for the freedom of Kashmir. We will continue our agitation for Islam and Allah will help us in our struggle for freedom,” the HM poster read.

Hurriyat-M chairman, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, said that they have asked that the agitation be continued by “all means” till the time Kashmir issue is resolved. “Our women have also faced the brunt and excesses have been committed on them and they have been fired with pellets,” he said.