Bilal Bashir Bhat
Srinagar 11 July (Only Kashmir): Continuing his style of unique protests, Awami Itihad Party (AIP) head Engineer Rashid on Thursday marched barefooted towards Chief Secretary’s office at civil secretariat Srinagar to submit a memorandum seeking road connectivity for the people of Karnah and Gurez.
Concluding three-day sit-in, AIP head Engineer Rashid marched civil secretariat barefooted from site of the sit-in to Chief Secretary’s office to protest against silence of the government over the non-availability of roads for the people of Karnah and Gurez.
On the occasion Er. Rasheed said that walking barefooted to civil secretariat is just a message not for the government not to underestimate the sufferings of people of border areas and we all must treat them too as humans.
He said “while in most of the cities and townspeople have got macadamized roads but isn’t it shameful that in Karnah and Gurez it takes sometimes even a week to reach dead body his home.”
Er. Rasheed submitted a memorandum to the government through Chief Secretary urging Union and State governments to take up the construction work for Karnah and Gurez Tunnels in hand at an earliest. 
He added that he will be writing to Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari over the issue.
Pertinently, Engineer Rashid is known for his unique protests, exactly this day on 11th July 2012 he brought around 100 stray dogs from his hometown with an aim to unleash them at the Civil Secretariat “so that government, which has failed to act against deadly stray dogs gets a feel of the menace.”
It is common for Er Rasheed to be marshelled out from state assembly on different occasions. The then Independent lawmaker Engineer Rashid was thrashed by a group of his BJP colleagues in the assembly earlier for hosting the beef party. Later Rashid again hit the headlines after he was attacked with ink at Delhi Press Club.
