Amdavadis show their support for 'Iron' Irom

Amdavadis on Wednesday joined hands to support the ‘Iron Lady of Manipur’ Sharmila Irom.

Local activists and citizens send a karwan (also called a jattha) in support of Irom’s hunger strike. The jattha, which began its journey from Ahmedabad on Wednesday evening, will reach Hazratbal, Srinagar on December 5.

Irom has been on hunger strike since November 2, 2000 and is demanding the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, (AFSPA) 1958 be revoked as she blames the same for violence in Manipur and other parts of north-east India.

“Our objective is to spread awareness amongst people of the state where AFSPA is not imposed and to further strengthen the nationwide signature campaign. This jattha, named Save Sharmila Solidarity Campaign, intends to spread the belief that non-violence means should not be ignored,” said the leader of the jattha and member of National Alliance of People’s Movement, Faisal Khan.

While explaining why the jattha commenced from Sabarmati Ashram, Khan said, “Gandhiji preached non-violence and peace for all. This gave us the idea to start our journey from Sabarmati Ashram. Hazratbal in Srinagar is a symbol of love, harmony and spiritualism. Also, Hazratbal was the starting point of the previous karwan, ‘Srinagar Imphal Save Sharmila Jan Karwan,’ that began its journey on October 16.”

The 12-day-long journey that commenced from Ahmedabad will cover Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bhuvneshwar, Raipur, Bhopal, Jaipur and Srinagar.