AFSPA Indo American community in the Silicon Valley implores the Government of India to take firm steps in Kashmir and not to compromise Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA)
In show of solidarity with displaced Kashmiri Hindus, a multitude of organisations came together on October 3, 2010 at Fremont CA Hindu Temple to resolve to send memorandum to the Government of India to take a tough stand against terrorist elements in Jammu & Kashmir and to assure that India does not dilute its stand on AFSPA.
The programme started with emotional recollection of his childhood by Moti Parimoo said in Jammu & Kashmir things have worsened for Hindus in recent times.
He recalled that during his recent visit to the state in 2008, it was an eerie feeling. The old hermitages and temples he had seen as a child were nowhere to be seen. The oppression of Hindus was so thorough that Hindu men could not even wear a tilak while Hindu women could not even wear bindi or sari.
Gaurang Desai, representing Friends of India Society International (FISI), indicated that there was a coordinated effort to malign security forces by targeting them with stone pelting by using women and children as human shield and to create more martyrs (Muslim youth) to generate international sympathy, which would force hand of Indian government in reducing the security forces and to curb or totally eliminate Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) giving terrorists and Pakistani infiltrators a free hand in the state. And that government was considering these demands in the form of an “Eid package”.
Representatives like Mr Rajesh Verma from Fremont Hindu Temple, spoke on ways and means of taking action from here in US. Other prominent persons including Bansi Tikoo, Sandeep Dhedge, Manorama Joshi, Dinesh Neelaver also actively participated in the event.
