Wani’s legacy of digital defiance
KASHMIRIS observe 9th martyrdom of their iconic and beloved social media activist, Shaheed Burhan Muzaffar Wani on July 8, 2025.
Wani was martyred by Indian occupation forces on this day in 2016 for the mass mobilization of the Kashmiri youth, after the introduction of social media in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). Wani made best use of social media in order to promote the cause of Kashmir among the Kashmiri youth. It was because of his social media campaigning that Kashmiri youth from IIOJK reinvigorated the political struggle for their right of self-determination. Since Indian occupation forces had banned the larger scale gathering of Kashmiris ever since the 1990s, therefore, through social media, Wani was able to bring together Kashmiris from all parts of the IIOJ&K for the common cause and a common ideology. The peaceful discourse for the right of self-determination, as pioneered by Shaheed Burhan Wani through his social media activism defeated the will of Indian Army and its paramilitary force.
Wani was the face of Kashmiri resistance to the Indian Army’s brutal tactics in IIOJK. He alone re-energized the Kashmiri freedom struggle. Burhan had garnered huge following due to his social media outreach and symbolically he had gained a pedestal that was worrisome for Indian occupying forces. Wani remained a threat for Indian armed forces for almost 6 years. Burhan used the modern communication facilities like........
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