Srinagar, Sep 29 (KNS): With one eye blind-folded showing solidarity with students who have lost their vision to the pellet injuries, the students wearing uniform on Thursday staged a protest march at Pantha Chowk and said no exams until Kashmir issue is resolved.
The students wearing school uniform led a protest march at Pantha Chowk and raised slogans like ‘stop killings in Kashmir’ and ‘stop blinding people in Kashmir’.
The students were holding placards displaying ‘Don’t pellet my exams, no exams till resolution of Kashmir issue’.
The students said that they are ready to sacrifice their one year of education as there are hundreds of students who were maimed and blinded by the forces during the protests in the ongoing uprising in Kashmir who can’t appear in exams in exams due to disability done by the Indian forces. “Keeping in view of the ongoing situation we have decided not to appear in examinations announced by the authorities concerned recently and are demanding the permanent resolution of Kashmir issue,” they said.
Meanwhile, in another similar protest, scores of 12th and 10th grade students took out a protest march from HMT area of Srinagar to press enclave against authorities for asking them to appear in examination staring from November this year.
The students were also holding placards displaying ‘Ready to sacrifice our future’ ‘No schooling, No exam Only Azaadi’.
They students were raising slogans like ‘Boycott boycott, Examination boycott.’
“We though this protest wants to convey a message to Education Minister, Naeem Akhtar that we are not going to sit in exams until and unless the long –pending issue of Kashmiris will not be resolved,” said a group of protesting students, adding that the authorities who are expressing their concern about the future of Valley students should pitch for the resolution of Kashmir issue as the un-resolved issue costs lot of lives so far.
They asked the state government that how the students can appear in the examination who have been maimed and blinded in Kashmir. “What will they do? Won’t they lose their precious year? Doesn’t maiming and blinding hamper their education,” they asked.
Meanwhile, reports said that scores of students staged a protest against the Education Minister Naeem Akhtar and the state government in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district.
The protesting students were demanding deferment of examinations.
Carrying placards with messages like “give me eyesight, I will take my exam (sic)”, ‘No exams till the solution’, “First pellets, then bullets, now exam’ and ‘boycott exams”, the protesters said that they would boycott examinations until the “human rights violations” in Kashmir were not stopped.
Earlier, similar protests were held in Bandipora, Srinagar and Shopian districts of Kupwara with students shouting slogans against Akhtar and the government.
Meanwhile, reports of similar protests were reported from Anantnag, Kulgam, Tral and other areas of Valley, where students categorically refused to sit in exams. (KNS)