On 5 August 2019, with no warning, the Indian government abrogated Article 370 of the constitution, which had earlier given the state of Jammu and Kashmir a degree of political autonomy from the central government. Jammu and Kashmir became a Union Territory, under closer control from New Delhi. The change in political status was accompanied by an increase in the already heavy security presence, as well as curfews and information black-outs. Years later, how has the abrogation of Article 370 changed the ground reality in Kashmir? This webinar will explore the impact of the political change on the ground reality for local people, examining changes in the experience of violence, the information landscape, and the daily encounters with the Indian state.

This event is co-sponsored by the Center for South Asia

Speaker:

Image

Anuradha Bhasin is a John S. Knight Journalism Fellow at Stanford University in 2022-23. She is is executive editor of the Kashmir Times, one of the oldest English dailies in Jammu and Kashmir.  When the government of India blocked internet and phone service in the region in 2019, Bhasin launched a court challenge while leading her newsroom through finding ways to keep publishing in spite of the blackout. Bhasin has worked at the Times her entire journalism career, starting out as a reporter trainee. She was among the first journalists to have done in-depth investigation into the impact of landmines on the lives of the people living on the borders and psychological impact of the Kashmir conflict. 

Moderator:

Image

Arzan Tarapore is the South Asia research scholar at the Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center at Stanford University, where he leads the South Asia Initiative. His research focuses on military strategy, Indian defense policy, and contemporary Indo-Pacific security issues. Prior to his scholarly career, he served as an analyst in the Australian Defence Department. Arzan holds a PhD from King’s College London.