Srinagar, Mar 6 (UNI) Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Thursday protested in Srinagar against BJP leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Sunil Sharma for calling the 1931 “martyrs” as “traitors.”

The party sought an apology from the BJP leader.

Sunil Sharma on Wednesday kicked up a major row when he called the 1931 “martyrs” traitors during the Assembly session. The controversy erupted when PDP’s Waheed Para demanded the restoration of the public holidays on July 13 and December 5, the birth anniversary of National Conference founder Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah. The Speaker expunged the “derogatory remarks” by the LOP.
The PDP workers led by party leader Iltija Mufti held protest on Thursday outside their office in Srinagar city centre. The protesters shouted slogan against the BJP.

Iltija hit out at the BJP saying that they will not let anybody sully the memory and the dignity and the respect of the 1931 martyrs.
"What can you expect from someone who is supporting a terrorist like Sadhvi Pragya and is sending a rapist like Ram Rahim for campaign?” the PDP leader asked.
“As far as Jammu and Kashmir is concerned, we have our own history, we have our collective history, we have our own heroes. And we will not let anybody sully the memory and the dignity and the respect of the 22 martyrs who sacrificed their lives to establish democracy and to give people their fundamental rights of democracy,” she added.

Iltija said it was because of the 1931 ‘martyrs’, theat awakened the political consciousness of everybody in Jammu and Kashmir, not just Kashmir, but throughout Jammu and Kashmir.

“ It also ignited a movement, a positive movement to fight for our rights, to fight for peace, to fight for democracy, to fight against despotic rule,” she said.

On July 13, 1931, 22 men were shot dead by soldiers of Kashmir's Dogra ruler outside the Central Jail in Srinagar. The protesters had assembled outside the Central jail to witness the trial of Abdul Qadeer- who was put on trial for his role in Kashmir uprising against the autocratic rule of Maharaja Hari Singh. They were later buried at the Naqshband Sahib graveyard in old Srinagar.

Before the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, J & K government used to observe - July 13 the ‘Martyrs day’, - as a state holiday, and all top government functionaries used to visit the 'martyrs' graveyard' at Naqshband sahib. However, in 2020, the Lieutenant Governor's administration removed it from the list of holidays.


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