The Dirty War in Kashmir, Paperback

Shujaat Bukhari was one of the most vital, balanced and well-informed voices in Kashmir. Perhaps for this reason, the 50-year-old journalist was shot dead by motorcycle-borne gunmen in Srinagar on the evening of June 14, 2018, as he was leaving the office of Rising Kashmir. A voice has been silenced. But before he was killed, Shujaat Bukhari documented for Frontline magazine the damage done to Kashmir. This book collects Shujaat Bukhari's reports from May 2017 to his assassination. He reflects here on the policies of the Indian state (including the impunity given to the army), the hate-filled politics of the Hindu Right (exemplified in the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua), the alienation of the Kashmiri people, the protests of young people (and their use of social media) and the rise of a new kind of militant (such as Burhan Wani). These are detailed assessments, essential reading for anyone who wants to know about the old and new forces inside Kashmir. The pieces offer insights into the ways and means to bring about lasting peace in the Valley - a cause for which Shujaat lived and died.