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Omar Abdullah Confronted In Us University


Date:- 21 Apr 2018


Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was confronted by a group of Kashmiri Americans in University of Barkley after he delivered a lecture, media reports said. Abdullah described the confrontation as ‘tamasha’ by ‘four hecklers’. The video of the verbal dual in which Abdullah is shouted upon and accused of being ‘war criminal and Indian agent’ went viral through internet.

The session was likely to be disturbed as a group of Kashmiri-origin scholars and workers in the US had launched an online campaign to hold a protest demonstration against the event. They crowd funded to ensure enough convergence of protesters at the venue. An online petition was generated to pressurise the University authorities to stop Abdullah’s arrival.

Two video clips were in circulation showing Abdullah being confronted inside a hall and shouted upon walking on a pavement outside a University building.

“I had a great session at @UCBerkeley & don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. FOUR hecklers (in an audience of 150+) who waited till the event concluded to make YouTube videos of themselves can’t take away from an excellent Q&A session there,” Omar wrote on Twitter. “I’m looking forward to the organisers putting the video of the entire session online so that the people who’ve seen the short tamasha can see how much substantial stuff happened before that.”

Omar further said: “And lastly I’ve never claimed to be universally loved or even liked so if 4 people in such a large audience make their dislike known it’s really not such a big deal at all. At least no one threw eggs or a shaving foam pie at me.”

In one video Abdullah questioned a protester’s antecedents and he identified himself as a resident of downtown Srinagar. “I am from Gojwara area of downtown Srinagar. I am living here for 25 years,” he told Abdullah. When Omar asked him as to why he had run away from Kashmir, he fumbled but quickly responded, “You guys threw us out.”

A lady protester who was later identified as Huma Dar waylaid Abdullah and told him that she wanted him to be taken to the international criminal court.

“Stop trading Kashmiri lives. Stop dirty politics and being an Indian agent,” another protester is heard as saying.

Abdullah had been invited by the University of California for a conversation over the topic — The path forward in Kashmir.

“Charismatic, articulate and an ardent fan of technology, Omar Abdullah is an Indian politician and the scion of one of the most prominent political families of Jammu and Kashmir, the Abdullah family,” the University announced on its website. “He served as the youngest Chief Minister of the State of Jammu and Kashmir from 2009-2014. He is currently the Leader of opposition in J&K legislative Assembly.”

“As a former Chief Minister and one of the most prominent politicians of Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah will talk about his vision for the path forward in the region and share his perspective on possible solutions,” THE University said.

“Did a performance piece outside the Faculty Club, where the mass murderer was invited to talk,” Dar, later wrote on her Facebook wall. “Tried to conduct a civilian’s arrest of the war criminal,” she wrote.

The online petition had demanded that the University called off the event because Omar was not the real representative of Kashmiri people.

“Berkeley is willfully providing a platform to Mr Omar Abdullah and allowing him to masquerade as the representative of the people of the occupied Kashmir, which he is clearly not,” the petition that was circulating on Facebook read.

“We expect Berkeley to do their due diligence in the future and consider the repercussions of allowing client politicians such as Omar Abdullah the privilege of speaking on behalf of the people whom he does not represent.”

Courtesy: The Pioneer, Saturday, 21 April 2018 | Khursheed Wani | Srinagar