Kashmir Shuts Down After Years, This Time in Protest Against Pahalgam Terror Attack

Kashmir valley saw a complete hartal (shutdown) on Wednesday for the first time since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, with shops and educational institutions closed and traffic absent from the roads. The day's events were to register peaceful protest against an onslaught of cowardice against tourists in Pahalgam, where at least 26 people were killed on the afternoon of Tuesday.

Pahalgam was a sight to behold with businesses closing, no movement of vehicles. Srinagar, including the old city, painted a grim picture. “All markets were closed in the city’s business hub of Lal Chowk. This is the first time after years that such a hartal is being observed in Kashmir, particularly after the Narendra Modi-led Centre’s crackdown on Kashmiri separatists,” said Abdul Hameed, a local resident and streetfood seller.

Also Read: Pahalgam Terror Attack Triggers Mass Cancellations, Devastates Kashmir’s Tourism Sector

After the incident of terrorists gunning down 26 tourists in the Baisaran meadow of Pahalgam in southern Kashmir's Anantnag district on Tuesday, it sent shockwaves to the Valley and to the tourism sector.

Union home minister Amit Shah, who reached Srinagar Tuesday night, and lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha joined chief minister Omar Abdullah in paying their last respects to the slain tourists in the police control room, Srinagar.

The chief minister conveyed shock and grief over the condemned attack, announcing an ex gratia of ₹10 lakh each to the families of the deceased, ₹2 lakh to seriously injured, and ₹1 lakh to those with minor injuries. “This barbaric and senseless act of brutality against innocent civilians has no place in our society. We condemn it in the strongest possible terms. We mourn the precious lives lost,” he said.

Also Read: ‘He Made Us Proud’: Navy Officer’s Wife Bids Tearful Farewell After Pahalgam Terror Attack

He said all arrangements for dignified transport of the victims back to their homes have been made, and the injured are being provided the best medical care. “Our hearts go out to the bereaved families. We share in your grief and stand by you in this dark hour. But terror will never break our resolve, and we will not rest until those behind this barbarity are brought to justice,” he said.

The killings were condemned by all major mainstream parties, including the National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party, as well as Kashmir chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq-led Mutahida Majlis Ulama, who called the strike. “Whoever kills an innocent soul, it is as if he has slain mankind entirely. Another day of carnage in the blood-soaked history of Kashmir when visiting tourists are mercilessly killed in the most gruesome manner. Such gruesomeness is abhorred in Islam. The Islamic fraternity of Jammu and Kashmir through the MMU in support and solidarity with the bereaved families of those killed appeal to the people of Jammu and Kashmir to peacefully protest this heinous crime by observing a shutdown,” Mirwaiz said.

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