Kashmir LitFest Normalizes indian Occupation of Kashmir
On November 3, the Srikula Foundation announced the first edition of its Kashmir LitFest, to be held on 7th and 8th December.
After releasing more information about its events, the festival faced criticism for its controversial line-up of army officials, collaborators and indians.
The first speaker announced on the festival’s Instagram page was Lt. Gen. D.P. Pandey. The festival’s decision to feature an army official not only ignores the indian army’s role in brutally occupying Kashmir, committing war crimes, and subjugating its people, but blatantly endorses it.
Moreover, the session in question was to be moderated by Shehla Rashid, a former “activist” who has taken to openly endorsing Modi and denying the plight of Kashmiris.
From the event’s selection of speakers, it is clear which people have been cherry-picked to speak on Kashmir. While india appoints its own Kashmiri representatives, the voices of journalists, academics and civil society across Kashmir- groups that should actually be discussing Kashmiri literature and arts- are silenced.
When called out for the event’s pro-india line-up on X, Shehla Rashid replied: “Better than those who have been organising terror, mistrust and mischief no?” Her response criminalizes legitimate Kashmiri resistance against india’s occupation and erases the role of indian propaganda in furthering indian colonial rule.
The festival also attempts to normalize that Kashmir is a part of india. One of the festival’s sessions is titled “Kashmir: The Jewel Crown of Bharat,” and solely emphasizes Kashmir’s Hindu history.
It also conflates indian and Kashmiri culture to reinforce the idea that Kashmir and india are one. In its cultural performances segment, the festival has scheduled a ‘Bharatnatyam Performance,’ a dance that is in no way indigenous to Kashmir and serves to further Hinduize the perception of the region.
The festival’s website describes its vision as preserving “Bharat’s indigenous culture” and india from “colonialism.” Consequently, india’s history as a colony is used to deflect responsibility from india as Kashmir’s present day colonizer.
Moreover, the chairman of the Srikula Foundation, Yuvraj Srivastava, frequently refers to Kashmir a part of “ancient Bharatvarsha,” as “the land of Parvati,” and shares numerous images of the tricolor flag. In one Instagram post, he poses with a rack of guns and writes #indianarmy in the caption. Srivastava also has a history of posting islamophobic and pro-Modi tweets on X. In one particular tweet, he mocks the halal meat industry.
The festival’s website describes its vision as preserving “Bharat’s indigenous culture” and india from “colonialism.” Consequently, india’s history as a colony is used to deflect responsibility from india as Kashmir’s present day colonizer.
Moreover, the chairman of the Srikula Foundation, Yuvraj Srivastava, frequently refers to Kashmir a part of “ancient Bharatvarsha,” as “the land of Parvati,” and shares numerous images of the tricolor flag. In one Instagram post, he poses with a rack of guns and writes #indianarmy in the caption. Srivastava also has a history of posting islamophobic and pro-Modi tweets on X. In one particular tweet, he mocks the halal meat industry.
