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Summing up SRINAGAR (Book Review)
ZGM’s Nostalgia shapes into a book bringing alive the stories from the city that once was Kashmir in recent years has witnessed a surge of books. Most of the books tell us the grim stories of the two decades. Most of these books have a single theme this one, but this book – Srinagar My City My Dreamland – is a compendium of articles written in Nostalgia column of Greater Kashmir over last few years, touching … Read entire article »
Filed under: Featured, Kashmir-Talk
Islamic Heritage of Kashmir
Islamic Heritage of Kashmir Kashmir has a rich heritage of manuscripts on Islam. Some Mss of Holy Quran e in many shrines date to 13th and 4th century- besides there are many Mss of classical works on Islam like those by Mir Syed Ali Hamadani and Sheikh Yaqoob Sarafi. Though chronicles suggest that Islam arrived in Kashmir in 6th Century and first mosque was built in 8th century but it took many centuries for this religions … Read entire article »
Filed under: Editor's Take
Hurriyat Conference New Avatar
Prodding and prompting are not synonymous.Prodding gets on one’s nerves as against this prompting stirs the thinking process.I admire prompting by friends on the social networks but am averse to prodding. On the exposure of the examination scandal involving Education Minister, Peerzada Muhammad Syed, some friends on the social network persistently prodded me to write against the ‘tainted minister’ detailing all his previous scandals. At the same time, prompting by some friends made me conscious about the catastrophic impact of the scandal on the future of educational system in the state. The scandal did provoke plethora of columns, some seeking intervention of the Congress Chairperson but with scepticism reigning supreme, I was amazed if my writing about the scandal would make any difference. Having an understanding of the Congress politics vis-à-vis Jammu … Read entire article »
Filed under: Editor's Take
Asian Powers in Kashmir
Asian powers in Kashmir Z.G. MUHAMMAD | ARAB NEWS Some 18 years back British historian Alastair Lamb, in his second book “Birth of Tragedy” raised some important questions about the birth of the “Kashmir Dispute”. In the questions posed, he looked for the attributes for the cause and perpetuation of this dispute. One of the questions that he raised is about the geographical location of the state: “Had the State of Jammu and Kashmir been situated almost anywhere else in the Subcontinent and had it embraced a lesser area, India-Pakistan argument over its future might not have been conducted with particular intensity. The State, however, lay not only adjacent to both India and Pakistan but also on a key frontier region which gave access to Central Asia, a part of the world which … Read entire article »
Filed under: Editor's Take
A cage called Kashmir
By Z.G. Muhammad Mogul emperor Shah Jahan, four and half centuries back, waxed lyrical on the sight of beautiful Kashmir valley nestled in the bosom of mighty Himalayas and called it paradise on the earth. In his wildest dreams he would not have imagined that one day this land will become more hellish than hell for its citizens. Now for for past more than six decades it is soaked in blood and tears with its every year having tales of repression, intimidation and terror to tell. The birth of Kashmir ‘tragedy’ dates back to the birth of India and Pakistan as independent nations. The future of this state at this important juncture of history of the sub-continent had remained undecided. The dispute over this strategically located state, bordering China, Russia, Afghanistan, … Read entire article »
Filed under: Editor's Take
Obama’s India visit and Kashmir connection
Nov. 6 is going to be the D-day for New Delhi. That is the impression one gets about the visit of US President Barack Obama to India on that day. He is arriving in the country’s commercial capital, Mumbai when majority of Indians would be celebrating Diwali — the festival of lights and most of North India would be drowned in a sea of lights. The night is marked by lighting of fireworks and exploding of … Read entire article »
Filed under: Editor's Take