Militant’s father in Brath Kalan votes early morning to exercise ‘democratic right’

Sopore, Oct 1: Ghulam Hassan Mir, father of a militant commander, Umar Mir Tuesday cast his vote at Brath Kalan and put forth an appeal to his son to join his family to save his life.

Mir, who cast his vote at 8:30 am at a polling station in the Brath Kalan area in Sopore outskirts, said he participated in the election process considering it as his democratic right.

“I voted because it is my democratic right. I was not forced by the Army or Police to cast my vote. Siding with boycott or staying away from elections is foolishness which we were siding with in the past,” Mir said after casting his vote.

He said the boycott era was a “bad era” and did not yield anything better for people.

“We want betterment for our lives and a better future for our generations,” Mir said.

He appealed to his son, who according to him has gone missing since 2017, to join his family and live a dignified life.

“We are all worried about his life. No doubt the Army and Police are giving us hopes that he will return home but we want him to join his family,” Mir said.

He asked his son to surrender and join his family.

“If you are somewhere in nearby areas then come home and live with us. Even if you will go to jail for some years, your life will be saved. If you are far away then get married and serve your family. But do not ruin your life. Life is precious and comes only once,” Mir appealed to his son.

About the boycott that prevailed in the Brath Kalan area in the past, he said that people have not realised that siding with the boycott was not good.

“We were caught in a dilemma and in a bad situation in the past. But now we have realised that we should come forward and cast our vote. Siding with the boycott brought humiliation and disgrace to our lives but we all want to live a dignified life,” Mir said.

However, he said that their area has faced neglect in terms of development during the past many years. “But now we hope that our area will witness development and all our issues are addressed,” Mir said.