A violent upturn

The good olden days are gone and the times slightly changed in Kashmir. What used to be is nowhere seen, heard, or witnessed. Things don’t change but are replaced by others; preferably by those serviceable. Many thoughts have seeped into the Culture of Kashmir which otherwise weren’t acceptable. And when we discern changing times, we see women lingering in the same place. Woman in Kashmir has always been considered to be a weak gender. A gender that could never sort its class. For women in Kashmir, times never changed. What this gender was looked upon then is looked upon now – a gender that is still considered to be a burden, a gender that has been enfeebled for generations, a gender that is still time-bound, and insecure. Has a flaw been with this gender to be? Or with people to reckon? To oppress this gender there have been various measures adopted by the people in our society like abusing them, blazing them, beat them, or disown them; the way one would have preferred! It has mostly been adopted by the in-laws after a woman is married off. And the custom continues to be alive, even after having a number of laws against domestic violence. Recent incidents of harassment and murder by in-laws have put forth in the same fashion it had been there decades ago. A woman who was recently beaten, blazed, and murdered, or a woman who hung herself due to the harassment by her in-laws are two active eye-openers. There is something to ponder over – has this custom to live more with us in our society?