Srinagar, June 14 -- By Zobiya Bhat

A few days ago, I was walking from my university to my hostel when a group of girls came into view ahead of me.

They were talking among themselves as they moved along the roadside, absorbed in the ordinary concerns of student life.

A few moments later, several young men on motorcycles approached, shouted loudly in an attempt to attract attention and sped away laughing.

Nothing followed.

The girls did not react, and kept walking. People nearby continued with their day.

The scene lasted only a few seconds, but I could not easily put it out of my mind.

What unsettled me was not the behaviour of the bikers. Kashmiri women know these encounters well. Most have experienced some version of them on roads...