SRINAGAR, SEPTEMBER 17: It wasn’t India versus Pakistan, but the match was just as exciting. Kashmiris, used to a cycle of violence, kept aside their troubles to be at the Bakhshi stadium to watch a football match - the final of the first national tournament here in militancy years.Spectators made it an opportunity to give vent to their feelings against the Border Security Force - who had not come to the stadium for a search operation but to play against Karnataka Police.On Saturday evening, when the final match of 49th B.N. Mullik MemorialFootbal Championship kicked off, Kashmiris chose to support the ``lesserevil'' among the two `Indian' teams. They backed the Karnataka Police team though they called them ``Veerappans''. The cheers worked: Karnataka Police beat BSF, 2-1.Soon after the match began, people started shouting ``Jeete ga jeete ga,Karnataka jeete ga''. The forest brigand's name reverberated across theBakhshi Stadium with ``Veerappan goal karo, goal karo''. And whenever aBSF forward would get chance to move with the ball, he was shouted down``BSF hai hai''. ``BSF yahan zulm karti hai (They are committing atrocities on Kashmiris),'' said Nasir Ahmad, a spectator, when asked the reason for this BSF-bashing at the stadium.Though the Jammu and Kashmir Police could not even make it to the semifinalstage, they however scored a big goal - it was on their appeal that football fans descended on the Bakhshi Stadium.``If the Government will agree to relax security restrictions onIndependence Day and Republic Day parades, thousands will come to witnessthese functions as well. This time we made no restrictions and people camewithout any fear,'' said a senior police officer.
