From tailor to teacher, from cab driver to horse-cart owner, she goes to everyone pleading to vote for her because she wants “to expose the people who exploited young girls in Kashmir”.
TURKPORA/BANDIPORA (North Kashmir): Inside her cramped house, Gousia Islam, 25, makes desperate calls to the police for another security vehicle needed for her canvassing. Few minutes later she comes out of her dilapidated home along with a handful of campaign managers and starts marching on foot caring too little for her security in this volatile township.
From tailor to teacher, from cab driver to horse-cart owner, she goes to everyone pleading to vote for her because she wants “to expose the people who exploited young girls in Kashmir”.
A BA political science student, Gousia’s unique plank has caught the attention of the people in this militancy-infested township which was once known as the corridor of terror. She is pitted against three political stalwarts in this constituency and her slogan may not be enough to help her in romping home.
What has prompted Gousia to jump into the poll fray was the harassment suffered at the “hands of her own people” who she does not want to name. “I have suffered in silence and I do not want people to suffer like me. I have joined politics to expose the top notch people involved in the sexploitation so that the society is rid of these black sheep”, she says.
Though bereft of any political background, she has formed an organization called Garib Nawaz Party which she says will fight for the poor and downtrodden who do not get justice because of the rich and mighty. “I have formed a committee which is preparing a list of the people involved in the sexploitation. This list will be forwarded to governor and if he does not take action, it will be made public,” she adds.
Gousia’s poverty and personal tragedy has made her stronger and she wants to fight to the finish. “It is my appeal to people to throw those leaders out of the power who support the corrupt, sexploitators and smugglers. You can call me anytime and ask questions and I will be glad to reply,” she drives her point home in small hamlets around Bandipora which were once a hotbed of militancy.
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