ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of the historical roots of the youth movement, begins with pre-Partition Kashmiri political formations up until the armed insurgency of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Indeed, "India's historical successes in weakening Kashmiri resistance have been realized by relying more on strategies of cooption than of violence," Wajahat Ahmad argues. Burhan Muzaffar Wani was the first militant in years to receive a considerable following in Kashmir, especially amongst the youth. Wani was young and managed to escape being killed for years, in a political climate in which the lifespan of a militant is months, even day. Wani's death reenergized the new wave of youth resistance that had been on the rise since 2008. After news of Wani's killing spread, there was collective mourning throughout Kashmir. His death also led the Indian state and it's local intermediaries to reinforce older modes of suppressing dissent, while devising new ones.
