-This video has been shared widely across social media,
appearing to show chaotic crowds of protestors
and general unrest in Kashmir.
It was filmed after India revoked
a constitutional provision that granted autonomous powers
to the state of Kashmir on August 5th.
While Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
has called the decision a new dawn
for residents in the area,
many people across those regions feel differently.
The Indian government and Kashmir state police officials
have said the region is calm and returning to normal.
-The valley has remained largely peaceful over the last one week.
-But video and eyewitness accounts
suggest a different story.
In order to understand what's happening in Kashmir,
you have to understand the history
of the long-disputed territory.
72 years ago, the Indian subcontinent,
which was previously under British rule,
split into two separate, independent states --
Pakistan, which has a Muslim majority,
and India, which has a Hindu majority.
Jammu and Kashmir, which is on the border of India and Pakistan
initially chose to remain independent.
But the Hindu prince who ruled the region
later acceded to India.
That move led to Article 370 of the Indian Constitution,
which granted a special status of autonomy to the state.
And the Indian government's decision to overturn it
undoes nearly seven decades of history.
It removed Kashmir's semi-autonomous status,
which gave it the power to make its own laws
and prevented nonresidents from buying property in the region.
The government also stripped Kashmir of its statehood,
turning it into a, quote, "union territory."
Both Pakistan and India still claim control of the region.
-So it has been a big flash point
between the two nuclear-armed neighbors,
which have been rivals for the past 70 years.
-Kashmir is a Muslim-majority state in India,
and it's still a touch point in the predominantly-Hindu country.
Modi leads the Hindu nationalist party,
the Bharatiya Janata Party, or the BJP,
which won a landslide election during which Modi campaigned
on the promise of revoking Article 370.
-The actual implementation came as a surprise
to everyone in the country, especially to Kashmir,
'cause there was no sort of preceding dialogue
or notice given to it.
It happened all of a sudden.
-In anticipation of the backlash to the decision,
the Indian government shut down
all forms of communication in Kashmir,
including the Internet, cable TV, and landlines.
Thousands of security forces
patrolled the streets at checkpoints,
public meetings of more than four people are banned,
and schools and colleges remain closed.
Many high-profile political leaders in Kashmir
continue to be held under detention.
-But there have been sporadic protests in the valley,
but the government has tried to ensure that no large-scale
protests or incidents of violence get reported.
-Misinformation, including old video,
has been widely shared during the aftermath
of the announcement to revoke Article 370.
However, the argument of old or fake footage
has also been used to decry real protests as fake.
-So what we found when we traveled there
was there was a sense of anger and resentment
against India's decision and the way it was implemented.
And I think that's a crucial point, as well,
that people felt cheated and betrayed that India,
after making promises for all these years,
has suddenly sort of unilaterally decided
to revoke something without even consultation with the people.
A section of the Indian National Press
and, of course, the government has tried
to sort of push back on this
and say that there are also people that are happy
and, you know, things are easing out.
But I think what we found there was definitely --
that was not the case.
-The Indian government has continued
to change its story regarding a protest
that occurred in Kashmir on August 9th.
First, they denied a large-scale protest took place in Srinagar.
Here's what video from the day shows.
Fact checkers in India geolocated the protests
at this mosque in Srinagar.
Signs referring to Article 370 verify these protests
were in response to the recent decision
and not old video that had resurfaced.
The Indian government walked back its statement
and acknowledged the unrest.
But Kashmir state police official denied any, quote,
"firing" took place.
Video published by the BBC has audio of firing
and tear gas as protesters disperse.
Officials later acknowledged pellets were fired
and caused injuries.
Their justification was that firing referred
to live bullets, not pellets.
More protests erupted on August 16th after Friday prayers
and continued into the following weekend.
In response to allegations that the protests were fake
or using old footage,
protesters started writing the date on their signs
to prove that these protests were, in fact, happening.
Photos and videos from the ground are hard to come by,
given the harsh crackdown on communication channels.
While India eased restrictions on landlines in Kashmir
after two weeks, authorities have refused to say
when Internet access and mobile services will be restored.
The existing visual evidence points to irrefutable proof
of discontent over the move to revoke Article 370,
a reality the Indian government has tried to deny.