| Muharram is apparently the first month of the Muslim calendar, second in holiness only to Ramadan for fasting and processions. The holiday of Ashura, when Shiites whip themselves bloody in memory of the death of Husayn ibn Ali, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad and in their eyes his rightful heir, in the Battle of Karbala, is on the 10th of this month. Ashura, it turns out, also commemorates when Moses parted the Red Sea for the Israelite slaves fleeing the Egyptian pharaoh, which for some reason the Muslims feel they are more entitled to celebrate than the Jews whose ancestors participated in the event. |
...a disputed territory lying between India and Pakistain. After partition, the Paks grabbed half of it and call it Azad (Free) Kashmir. The remainder they refer to as "Indian Occupied Kashmir". They have fought four wars with India over it, the score currently 4-0 in New Delhi's favor. After 72 years of this nonsense, India cut the Gordian knot in 2019, removing the area's special status, breaking off Ladakh as a separate state, and allowing people from other areas to settle (or in the case of the Pandits, to resettle) there....
, New Delhi has lifted a three decade-old ban on the Muharram processions; something that people of Kashmir have always demanded. However,
women are made to be loved, not understood...
the decision to lift the ban has come at a time when all other social and religious activities have been halted due to the coronavirus (aka COVID19 or Chinese Plague)
...the twenty first century equivalent of bubonic plague, only instead of killing off a third of the population of Europe it kills 3.4 percent of those who notice they have it. It seems to be fond of the elderly, especially Iranian politicians and holy men...
pandemic and this has raised concerns among the people.
Since the armed resistance against Indian rule began in Kashmir in 1989, New Delhi imposed a ban on Muharram processions in Indian Administered Kashmir reasoning these processions might be used by the pro-freedom outfits to instigate the anti-India sentiments.
Despite being challenged in the court of law the ban remained intact.
However,
women are made to be loved, not understood...
in a surprising move New Delhi's administration this year lifted the ban. But more than appreciation this decision has received criticism.