Kashmiri artist accuses Facebook of removing cartoon on Afzal Guru

A Kashmiri artist on Tuesday accused Facebook of bringing down a cartoon which marked the third death anniversary of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru's hanging. Guru, hailing from Kashmir's Baramullah district, was hanged in Delhi's Tihar jail in 2013 for his role in the infamous attack on Parliament in 2001.

The cartoon in question was first published in the Rising Kashmir. Speaking to Hindustan Times, Mir Suhail Qadiri, the artist involved, said the cartoon was "deleted from Facebook on Tuesday morning”. 

Responding to allegations a Facebook spokeperson told HT, "We remove any comments - posted by anyone - that praise or support terrorist groups or their actions."

The artist who posts his cartoons on a FB page titled 'Mir Suhail' said that he found a message from Facebook reading, "We removed something you posted" along with an image of his post containing the cartoon. He also informed that Facebook has blocked him from posting cartoons on his page. However, support poured in from all directions for Qadiri on Tuesday after his fan page, which has as many 32,000 followers, was temporarily blocked, 

A lamenting Qadiri told Hindustan Times, "The incident shows how fragile freedom of expression is in India. I know that in a community many people don’t like my cartoons, but things getting deleted is just not acceptable." The recent allegations came at a time when seperatist groups called for a shutdown in the Kashmir Valley to mark the death anniversary of Guru. Ever since Guru's execution, his family and other seperatist organisations have been asking for his mortal remains, which are still kept in Delhi's Tihar jail.

“The cartoon basically showcases how emotionally Kashmiris are connected with the hanging of Afzal Guru. The roots of the trees represent veins. And it’s not my opinion. See how Kashmir was today…a complete shutdown on the occasion of anniversary of Guru’s hanging,” Qadiri remarked. Guru's hanging has always been an emotional issue in the valley, where he is still hailed as a hero, a martyr.

This is not the first time that Facebook has been accused of muzzling artistic freedom. Earlier too, Facebook had faced a lot of flak for removing graphic artist and designer Orijit Sen's work titled 'Punjaban', claiming that it contained nudity.