Srinagar: The All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) has sharply criticized the Indian government, accusing it of conducting a systematic assault on the Muslim identity of Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). The APHC claims this strategy is a core element of the broader Hindutva agenda pursued by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration.

According to Kashmir Media Service, APHC spokesman Advocate Abdul Rashid Minhas issued a statement in Srinagar detailing a range of policies implemented by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that allegedly aim to suppress the religious and cultural presence of Muslims in the region. Minhas asserted that these actions include the aggressive promotion of Hindutva ideology, the appropriation of Muslim religious sites, and the incorporation of Hindu symbols and traditions into the daily lives of the region’s Muslim population.

The APHC highlighted several instances of what it views as cultural encroachment: the forced singing of Hindu hymns by Muslim students, the establishment of new Hindu temples, and the promotion of Hindu cultural practices within IIOJK. These measures are part of a deliberate effort to shift the demographic and cultural makeup of the region.

Furthermore, the statement criticized the Modi government’s educational reforms in the region, which include the modification of school curricula and textbooks to reflect Hindutva perspectives and the altering of the Kashmiri script, a move seen as an attempt to disconnect the people from their historical and cultural roots.

The APHC has called on the international community to intervene and pressure the Indian government to cease its policies of cultural domination and religious coercion in Kashmir. The party claims that the control over key religious sites and the alteration of educational content are clear indicators of the government’s intent to undermine and reshape Kashmir’s Muslim identity.