Oppression of Kashmiri Students: Education Turned Into A Tool of Cruelty

Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir is living under nonstop repression. The Modi government has made sure that every part of Kashmiri life is filled with hardship so that people remain weak and silent. Education, which should be a right, has been turned into a heavy burden. Kashmiri students are forced to pay far higher fees compared to students in India, proving a clear design of discrimination. Figures show that 87 percent of Kashmiri students pay course fees while in India the figure is much lower. This policy is not by mistake. It is punishment for a people who continue to demand their right to freedom.

Education As A Target

Education in occupied Kashmir has been turned into a tool of control. Instead of giving young people hope, schools and colleges have been made another front of oppression.

Figures Show Injustice:

• In occupied Kashmir, 87 percent of students are forced to pay course fees compared to only 57.1 percent in India.
• Among boys, 89.3 percent must pay while among girls the figure is 84.3 percent.
• These numbers show that students are punished simply because they are Kashmiris.

Rural And Urban:

• In rural Kashmir, 85 percent of students pay course fees, including 87.7 percent boys and 81.7 percent girls.
• In urban areas, the figure rises to 96.1 percent of students.
• Among urban girls, 96.3 percent are paying fees, proving how young women too are directly trapped in this system.

Higher Education Under Attack

The pressure is even worse at the secondary and higher secondary levels where nearly every student is forced to pay. This makes education nearly impossible for poor families.

Secondary And Higher Secondary:

• At the higher secondary level in Kashmir, 100 percent of students reported paying course fees.
• In India, the figure is 85.9 percent, showing clear bias against Kashmiris.
• At the secondary level, 98.7 percent of Kashmiri students pay course fees while in India the figure is much lower.
• The pattern shows a clear design to block Kashmiri youth from advanced education.

Impact On Families:

• Families already suffer because of curfews, blockades and loss of work.
• Parents are forced to choose between basic needs and education costs.
• Many are pushed into debt or forced to pull their children out of school.
• This is a direct attack on the future of Kashmiri society.

Economic Repression

The education crisis is linked with the wider economic strangling of Kashmir. Families are kept poor by design so they cannot resist occupation.

Economic Hardship:

• Years of curfews, raids and military actions have destroyed local trade, tourism and farming.
• Families already have no stable income and now face heavy education costs.
• This is not a question of poor management but a deliberate attempt to keep Kashmiris weak.
• It is part of India’s larger plan to crush freedom.

Goal Of Suppression:

• India wants Kashmiri families too weak to protest.
• By making education costly, the youth are blocked from growing strong.
• This is direct punishment for seeking freedom.
• The target is not education but the spirit of an entire people.

Human Rights Violations

The unfair fees are part of a bigger chain of human rights abuses. Kashmiris live each day under denial of rights and attacks on their dignity.

Daily Reality:

• Students pay more than students in India for the same courses.
• Families face raids, detentions and harassment under military rule.
• Voices for freedom are crushed with arrests and torture.
• The Modi government continues with these acts without fear of accountability.

Targeting The Youth:

• Students are seen as the backbone of the freedom struggle.
• By attacking education, India aims to break the hope of the next generation.
• This is not by accident but a calculated plan to weaken Kashmiri youth.
• It is collective punishment of an occupied people.

World Responsibility

India calls itself the largest democracy but in Kashmir it commits open crimes. The world cannot stay silent in the face of such injustice.

Need For Action:

• India must be held responsible for human rights abuses in Kashmir.
• The United Nations must press for its own resolutions on Kashmir.
• World powers must demand an end to policies that punish students and families.
• Global silence only allows India to continue with more crimes.

Steps Required:

• Rights groups must expose the discrimination in education in Kashmir.
• Sanctions should be placed on Indian leaders who spread repression.
• Relief and scholarships must be given to Kashmiri students.
• Most importantly, Kashmiris must be allowed to exercise their right to decide their own future.

Conclusion

The figure of 87 percent Kashmiri students paying heavy fees is not just a number. It is proof of a policy that uses education as punishment. India is targeting the young to crush the future of Kashmir. The Modi government has turned schools into another weapon of control. By forcing families into poverty and blocking students from higher education, India hopes to silence Kashmir’s voice for freedom.

This cruelty is a crime against human rights and against justice. The world must act now. India must be held to account for its crimes in occupied Kashmir. The United Nations must deliver on its own promises of self-determination. Silence is no longer an option. The suffering of Kashmiri students is the suffering of an entire nation under illegal occupation. Justice delayed for Kashmir is justice denied.