Following a successful campaign to prevent AIDS with the help of religious heads in the Valley, psychiatrists have now sought the involvement of Imams and mosques to fight the alarming rise in cases of suicides in Kashmiri society. A study by a state-run psychiatric hospital has put “declining religious values, lack of religious education and conflict related stress” as the main reasons behind this “alarming” trend.A noted Kashmiri psychiatrist Dr Arshad Hussain said the study revealed that the decline of religious values among Kashmiri Muslims is a major factor that has prompted people to take the extreme step. “I am not referring to the decline in the practice of religion but faith,” he said. “During the study, I found that despite suffering from chronic suicidal behaviour people abstain from taking the extreme step because Islam strictly prohibits suicide. It is the single biggest reason for most people to hesitate,” said Hussain. He said suicidal behaviour has become “one of the most common emergencies in medical casualties of Kashmir” and the “second most common cause of unnatural death” after violence.Hussain said he has sought involvement of religious leaders especially Imams and mosques to initiate a campaign that emphasises on the prohibition of suicide in Islam. “This will help in two ways. Mosques and religious gatherings will make people aware of this disturbing trend in society. Then we hope that religious prohibition of suicide will discourage people from taking the extreme step,” he said.In fact, the J&K Government’s AIDS Control Society had earlier successfully collaborated with religious leaders to run a campaign to prevent spread of HIV. The programme was framed on the basis of a successful campaign launched by the United Nations across Muslim dominated countries in Africa.The study, “Muslim suicide - experience from Kashmir valley”, has found that the suicide rate in Kashmir rose from 0.5 per 1 lakh people to 13 per 1 lakh people over the last decade, making it a major health problem. “It has all happened because of the 17 years of conflict that has engulfed every sphere of life in Kashmir,” he said. The results of Hussain’s study revealed that on an average 3.5 persons with suicidal behaviour report everyday to SMHS causality. “Most of the people who commit suicide are males between the age group of 25 to 34. Most of the attempts are made by women,” Hussain said.
