Podcast; Voices from the Lockdown: Amid shutdown in Kashmir's Kupwara, locals say faith in regional parties marred

Since Home Minister Amit Shah moved two bills in the Rajya Sabha to revoke the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 and to bifurcate the State into two Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, it has been under a lockdown since 5 August. This new Firstpost podcast titled Voices from the Lockdown seeks to explore the ground realities in Kashmir, Ladakh and Jammu under this communications shutdown through conversations with journalists and experts from the Valley. As Kashmir continues to reel under 116 days of communication blockade with internet and prepaid mobile services remaining unrestored, in this segment of Voices from the Lockdown, we will speak to Daanish Bin Nabi about where things stand in the district of Kupwara. Kupwara is a district which used to be at the centre of militant activity for the longest time. Similar to what happened in Baramulla, which we discussed at length on Thursday, the district was heavily militarised after the 1990’s. Following this, Kupwara remained distant from what was happening in other parts of Kashmir. For the first time in years, Kupwara witnessed a complete shutdown for three months after Centre’s 5 August decision to abrogate Article 370. In this episode, we will also playback interviews with residents of Kupwara about how they view this unprecedented shutdown in Kupwara. One of them, a student who wishes to remain anonymous, talks to us about how her trust in regional parties stand vitiated.