Tale of Tahir , Who Dreamed To Become A Journalist ,Is Now Behind The Bars

tahir

Tahir Ahmad Mir, a student of Journalism of Kashmir university is a criminal in the opinion of the police because of his alleged involvement of pro-freedom activities and is behind the bars for the   last long six months. Tahir was arrested in November allegedly for having involvement in pro-freedom activities during the peak of 2016 uprising. A resident of Kashmir’s Bandipora district, Tahir had been slapped with the draconian PSA (public safety act). He was first lodged in Kot Balwal Jail in Jammu and was shifted to Central Jail Srinagar for his exams on the court orders.
Tahir’s father Habibullah Mir who on performing his professional duty died when an unknown gunman attacked the car of the then SSP, some seventeen years before. As per relatives, he was just 10 years old that time and was Class 4th student at Eaglets Public School in Plan Bandipora, when the tragedy hit his life. Tahir’s mother Safeera Begum succumbed to the tragedy of her husband’s death and died of the shock.
Tahir who is currently languishing in central Jail Srinagar was recently shifted there from Kotbalwal jail Jammu. According to Police, There are at least 13 FIR’ s against Tahir on the charges of stone pelting, disrupting law and order situation during last year’s Deadly uprising in which over 100 young charming faces were killed. He was arrested in the month of November last year and later he was booked under the draconian public safety act.

Tahir, who was working as a laboratory bearer, was recently sacked from his job allegedly for his involvement in Anti-Govt Protests.
According to Police, Tahir is responsible for organizing hundreds of rallies in Bandipora town, after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Muzaffar Wani.  According to the police Tahir was provoking the local youth of Bandipora town for holding anti-govt activities.  Tahir’s elder brother Abid Mir says Tahir was not a stone pelter, his activities were based on freedom of speech which is one of the basic rights of every individual. Tahir says “I am not breaking any law, right to freedom of speech is my Constitutional right, which has been given to me”.
The last year’s deadly Tahir started a small trust under the name of “Faraiez-e-muslimeen” most participants of this trust were close friends of Tahir. They  were collecting money, and later distributed that among the needy, poor and orphans. Tahir also set up a Relief committee under the name “Baitul Maal” where he started collecting food and clothes for poor people residing in Bandipora district, even he collected more than Five lakh rupees which were later distributed among the needy by the chief cleric of Bandipora Moulana Khursheed Ahmad Nadvi.

 

His brother who runs a small shop in Bandipora said that he was a child when their father  left this world. “That time I was class 6th student and my sister was the student of clasa 2nd . Zakir, the eldest brother was in 8th class at that time. At the 18 years of age, he started working as a constable in J&K police department. Zakir who is our elder brother is like our father, brother and even everything. We never feel that we are orphan” .

“Our grandmother is only one whom Tahir considered as his mother. When she passed away at the age of 65 years, Tahir couldn’t bear this irreparable loss. At that time, Tahir was not at home, he was hiding somewhere, even everyday police came to raid our house. But he risked his Life to see last glimpses and to attend last rites of his grandmother”, Zakir said.
Abid added that when Tahir received his maiden salary, he handed that to his grandmother, even brought a pheran( a long raditional cloak) for her from the market. Five years back when he completed schooling, he was selected as class IV employee in the department of education, as a laboratory bearer and his first posting were at Gurez where he spent almost two years.
In the year 2014 when the devastating flood hit Kashmir valley, he came back and joined Govt middle school. At Govt middle school he spent money from his pocket to serve poor and needy kids.
He was sacked from his job for his alleged involvement in holding anti-government protests. Last year he was selected in master in Journalism at Kashmir university. Becoming a journalist was his last hope and a dream to become the voice of hopless people, but unfortunately, authorities shattered his dream.
Author is a kashmiri  Journalist and can be reached  [email protected]

 

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