“Go out and fight for your rights with shrouds of martyrdom, we are with you, but stand on your own :Grand Ayatollah Noori Hamadani to Kashmiris
September 7th 2019-Qom: In a special meeting organised by the office of Shia religious authority, Ayatollah Hamadani, a large number of seminary students from Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh met him.
After a few Kashmiri students spoke at the event and presented the current situation of Kashmir, Ayatollah Hamadani expressed that people should face the oppressor with shrouds of martyrdom. He stated,”Imam Hussain has shown us the path. He came to the battlefield himself along with his family. They all got martyred but proved Islam to be right and saved it. We are going to back you but you yourselves especially religious scholars must come to the battlefield dressed in shrouds. We are on the side of all oppressed people. Our government, our Leader, all of us will help you but you yourselves must start the movement. Iran was also like Kashmir but hundreds and thousands of Ulama went to the battle fields and stood with the warriors and the revolution succeeded. This place(Iran) was also like your Kashmir. We were under American and British colonial domination but we were able to defeat them only because we went to the battlefields and gave martyrs. You will find graves of martyrs and memorials of martyrs in every city and village of Iran. Our roads and lanes have been named after martyrs. We have become independent only because we gave martyrs.” He also added,”If you want to take your right back, you must take the path of Jihad and martyrdom for the honor of Islam and Muslims is in Jihad. Allah honors Muslims if they take the path of Jihad and resistance and fight for their rights and defend them. The fact that you are ready to defend your rights is a good sign. Come to battlefields and we will help you. We hope and pray for your victory.”
Towards the end of the meeting, Kashmiri students presented a jurisprudence question asking Ayatollah Hamadani for a fatwa forbidden the sale of land to non-Kashmiris in Kashmir. He responded to their request saying,”You need to stand united behind this fatwa like the people of Iran stood behind Mirza Shirazi’s fatwa on forbidding tobacco.” Kashmiri students responded to this by raising slogans like “Kashmiris will die, but not accept humiliation” and “Heyhat minna zillah”- a famous Shia slogan meaning disgrace is far from us. The Ayatollah responded saying that if you continue with this energy on the path you will certainly be victorious.
-Ayatollah Noori Hamadani
