MITRIGAM, Kashmir — For more than two decades, Peerzada Lateef Shah risked his life in a high-wire political process to bring peace to Kashmir, the mountainous, predominantly Muslim region that has long chafed under India’s rule. He organized rallies and encouraged Kashmiris to vote for a political party that did not want to fight India and would instead accept some degree of Indian authority. Now, a little more than a year after India revoked Kashmir’s statehood and upended years of policies that granted Kashmiris some autonomy, Mr. Shah is among a growing group of political moderates who feel betrayed, disillusioned and disenfranchised. For years, he and others sought a middle path that would bring stability to one of Asia’s most volatile regions. Today, Mr. Shah wonders whether his life’s work was a waste.

Source: New York Times September 02, 2020 02:48 UTC