Who killed Babar Qadri Advocate?

Who killed Babar Qadri Advocate? 

Dr Shabir Choudhry 30 September 2020 

When Baber Qadri was killed, I was among those who condemned it, and demanded very strict punishment for the assassins. Also in my TV programme, My Voice, Abbas Butt and I condemned this targeted murder and demanded that the culprits must be caught and punished. 

Baber Qadri was not the first innocent person to die because of his political narrative, and sadly he won’t be the last one. His father in Law, Dr Ghulam Qadir Wani Sahib, a good friend of mine with whom I had lengthy discussions on various aspects of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in Islamabad, was also murdered on his return to Kashmir. 

He was killed because he advanced a narrative that was abhorred by Islamabad and their foot soldiers. They wanted to silence all sane voices, and especially voices of dissent that they can impose their agenda on Kashmir. 

While talking on this subject and expressing my sentiments with a thinking Kashmiri from the Valley of Kashmir, I said, ‘We both are also among the killers of Baber Qadri’. He was stunned by my remarks, and asked me for clarification. 

I said, although I was never part of militancy, however, we both were part of the JKLF. In our own way, we strengthened the JKLF and promoted its ideology. The JKLF, in turn, collaborated with the ISI and introduced a gun culture in Kashmir with disastrous results for the polity of Jammu and Kashmir and people of Jammu and Kashmir, especially people of the Valley. 

Hizb ul Mujahideen took the gun culture introduced by the JKLF to the next level. Militancy and gun culture became a lucrative business for some people. Subsequently Al Umer Mujahideen, Jaish e Mohammed, Lashkar e Taiba and other militant organisations took control of the gun culture. 

India had obligation to protect life, liberty and property of the people. They failed to do that; and innocent people were killed by men in uniform and militants. No one was safe in Kashmir. 

In my opinion, all those who supported militancy, I mean political parties, APHC, Jihad Council, other groups and individuals are also indirectly culpable for death and destruction that is going on since 1988. 

We cannot shun our responsibilities by pointing finger at others or by using abusive language. Every human life is valuable, and we have to protect human lives rather than supporting those who want blood and dead bodies to advance their agenda. 

Mian Abdul Qayuum and High Court Bar Association. 

Generally members of the Bar associations are affiliated to political parties, alliances or groups, but the Bar associations as an organ do not subscribe to any political ideology or become a member of any political alliance to advance a particular ideology. 

Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association is unique in some ways that it officially subscribes to a political ideology, and actively advances the political programme of APHC, which people believe was created by ISI to advance their agenda on Jammu and Kashmir dispute. 

Is it not better for the Bar Associations to defend rights of citizens and dispense their responsibilities in accordance with the law rather than advancing a particular ideology? Won’t this prejudice rights of those who do not ascribe to this particular ideology, for example, members of National Conference, PDP, Congress and many others. 

Coming back to the tragic killing of Baber Qadri, it must be noted that he was very outspoken and courageous man. He did not hesitate to confront and expose those who, in his opinion, were agents of India or Pakistan. Just like political culture of Pakistan, in political culture of Jammu and Kashmir, no evidence is required to accuse people of treason and labelling them as traitors and agents. 

Baber Qadri also accused some prominent people, groups and parties. In his view, some known political leaders of Kashmir were ISI agents and some were Indian agents. He accused Jamat e Islami and also accused APHC leaders and Mian Abdul Qayuum, the President of Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association. 

Baber Qadri contested Mian Abdul Qayyum in the election for the post of President of High Court Bar Association, and badly lost. After 5 August 2019, in protest against what India did, Mian Abdul Qayyum, as the President of the Bar Council declared to boycott the courts. 

Baber Qadri defied that by taking up a case of a 12 years old child who belonged to a poor family. They could not afford the court fees. Baber Qadri, on humanitarian grounds (he did not charge any fees) fought his case. 

Although what Baber Qadri did was purely on humanitarian grounds, Mian Abdul Qayyum did not appreciate his sentiments, and regarded his action as non-compliance to the decision of the Bar Council and suspended his membership. This further aggravated the situation and embittered already bad relationship. 

Baber Qadri did not hesitate to call Mian Abdul Qayyum and Jamat e Islami ISI agents. Baber Qadri and supporters of Mian Abdul Qayyum and Jamat e Islami publicly spoke against each other. 

Baber Qadri and his friends felt that his life was in danger. Sources close to Baber Qadri’s family confirm that there was a serious threat to his life. He talked to his friends about the threats and intimidation. He shared nature of these threats on the social media; and he twice requested the concerned authorities for security. 

It is believed that the concerned authorities were seriously evaluating the situation to provide him some security. Alas, those who were responsible to provide security were still deliberating on the issue, and assassins silenced another dissenting voice. 

One Kashmiri person from the Valley of Kashmir said, no one came from Delhi or Islamabad to kill Baber Qadri. Someone from here did this. We need to stop accusing India or Pakistan for every murder that takes place in Kashmir, and find the culprits who live among us. 

Some critics point fingers towards supporters of Mian Abdul Qayyum, others accuse Jamat e Islami and other local outfits. The authorities need to investigate this matter and arrest the culprits and punish them in accordance with the law. 

If this gun culture and terror infrastructure is not eradicated, I am afraid more innocent people will die unnecessarily. We need to rethink wisdom of our policies and rectify mistakes of the past. 

Writer is a renowned writer and author of many books. He is also President Foreign Affairs Committee of UKPNP; and Chairman South Asia Watch, London. 

Email: Drshabirchoudhry@gmail.com Twitter: @Drshabir