PDP chief demands probe into Gujjar youth's killing, alleges targeted violence
'Such extra-judicial killings have no place in a democracy. This is state-sponsored terror targeting Gujjar-Bakerwal communities,' Mufti said, demanding a time-bound judicial probe.
Mufti highlighted a disturbing pattern of violence against Gujjar-Bakerwals in 2024-25. Citing cases of alleged custodial deaths, staged encounters, and disappearances—including that of Makhan Din in Kathua, three youths in Kulgam, and Imtiyaz Magray in Kulgam—she said the community is being systematically harassed.
She also mentioned the recent disappearance of Manzoor Ahmad from Kishtawar and a missing tribal student, Muddasir Dhakad, from Kulgam. Thousands from the community have reportedly been detained during seasonal migrations without charges.
Mufti warned that such brutality deepens alienation. 'The Gujjar-Bakerwals, once pillars of support for the region, are now treated as disposable,' she said, adding that incidents like the 2018 Kathua rape-murder still haunt the community. She assured the family of Parvez of her party's full support in the fight for justice.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Indian Express
3 days ago
- New Indian Express
TN's Mango farmers left in lurch as pulp units shut doors, exports falter
The summer is past, but the sweat of uneasiness is still dripping from the eyebrows of mango farmers in Tamil Nadu, as the season was different this time around. While the 'king of fruits' entered households in abundance, as it generally does, the mango cultivators, who otherwise remain off the media glare, also entered the drawing rooms, virtually. They caught the attention of the media and thereby those in power, at least briefly, during the peak season in June. For about two weeks, the media, with its appetite for drama, covered episodes of farmers dumping mangoes in large quantities on the roads in protest and out of desperation, as the pulp-making units, whom they primarily rely on for selling their produce, either did not buy the fruit citing poor demand from up the value chain or offered an abysmal price of Rs 1 to Rs 5 per kg. While speaking to TNIE in June, NT Bharat from Paradarami in Vellore pointed to a couple of thousand tonnes of mangoes harvested in the region with no buyer coming forward, saying, 'Officials said they will find a proper solution. They do not understand the urgency. Our fruits are already rotting.' K Murugan from Marandahalli in Dharmapuri district said dumping the produce on roadside was a better way to prevent further losses. 'We would otherwise have to spend Rs 1 per kg for cleaning and transport, besides labour charges for collecting the fruits, at a time when the companies are not even offering us Rs 5 per kg,' he said. R Venkatesan of Katpadi in Vellore, meanwhile, had a tractor full of mangoes waiting outside a pulp factory in Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh for a few days, expecting that they would be procured. 'The fruits are rotting as we speak. It's heartbreaking,' he told TNIE in the third week of June. As voices from TN's mango-growing districts intensified and pressure mounted from the opposition parties, the state government met owners of pulp-making companies on June 16, 'urging' them to procure the mangoes, but to no avail. A week later, Chief Minister MK Stalin wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan seeking the implementation of the Market Intervention Scheme for mangoes in the state to compensate the farmers through Price Deficiency Payment (PDP), with the Union and state sharing the cost equally.
Hindustan Times
4 days ago
- Hindustan Times
Omar Abdullah's signature campaign draws flak
The launch of a signature campaign for statehood restoration by J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah has drawn sharp criticism from leaders of various political parties terming it as shameful. The launch of a signature campaign for statehood restoration by J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah has drawn sharp criticism from leaders of various political parties terming it as shameful. (ANI File) In his Independence Day speech at Bakshi Stadium on Friday, Omar said that he is going to launch a signature campaign across J&K for statehood restoration and will reach every house and village of UT. 'In the next 8 weeks, we will reach out to all 90 assembly constituencies of Jammu and Kashmir, gathering signatures from the people in support of the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir. We will not rest until our rights are restored. We cannot be denied equality,' Omar Abdullah said while two former CMs Farooq Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti were in audience along with over a dozen legislators. The PDP criticised Omar Abdullah's signature campaign. 'Omar Abdullah owes an apology not a signature campaign for normalising 5th August. With 50 MLAs behind him, he has reduced the fight for J&K's statehood to token gestures, after seeking votes door-to-door on the promise of restoring pre–5th August status. This is not just retreat, it is betrayal. The people gave him a historic mandate to fight for Article 370 and statehood, not to stage political theatre. If he has already surrendered, he must admit it and apologise to every citizen of J&K for selling promises he never intended to keep,' PDP legislative party leader Waheed ur Rehman Para wrote on X. People's Conference chairman Sajjad Lone said he supports statehood but the said signature campaign has no legal value. 'I beg you. Please stop this childish and immature attitude. We will support any campaign unconditionally. But please ensure that a resolution from the state assembly is also passed and sent to the Supreme Court,' he said. Awami Itihaad Party (AIP) chief spokesperson Inam Un Nabi called the move 'a shameful confession of political irrelevance and utter failure'. 'Omar had a golden opportunity to fight for the rights of the people when the NC got a full mandate to represent the aspirations of Kashmiris, especially on Article 370 and statehood. Instead of pursuing these goals with conviction, NC has chosen the path of surrender and soft obedience towards the BJP. This signature campaign is nothing but a diversion from their betrayal,' he said. He termed Omar's statement a classic case of 'political theatre', noting that the NC's past performance in power and their silence during the critical years post-August 5, 2019, speaks volumes about their priorities. 'If Omar truly had the will, he would have mobilised legislators including that of oppositions , taken legal and constitutional routes and built a national-level consensus for the restoration of rights. Instead, he's now going door-to-door collecting signatures, as if Kashmir's dignity can be traded with a petition paper,' he said.
New Indian Express
5 days ago
- New Indian Express
Omar becomes first elected CM to unfurl tricolour on I-Day in J&K UT, says no major announcement came from Delhi
SRINAGAR: Omar Abdullah on Friday became the first elected Chief Minister of the Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory to unfurl the tricolour and preside over the main Independence Day function in Srinagar. He said no major announcement came on the day from Delhi. Omar, who took over as the first Chief Minister of J&K UT in October last year, unfurled the tricolour at the main I-Day function at Bakshi Stadium in Srinagar. The CM was presented with a guard of honour before inspecting the contingents taking part in the parade. He also took the salute during the march past at the low-key Independence Day celebrations, held in the wake of the cloudburst tragedy in Kishtwar in which 46 people have been killed and dozens are still missing. On 5 August 2019, the Centre scrapped J&K's special status and downgraded and bifurcated the erstwhile J&K state into two Union Territories, Jammu and Kashmir (with a legislature) and Ladakh (without a legislature). Since 2020, the Lieutenant Governor had been unfurling the tricolour on I-Day in J&K. After the fall of the Mehbooba Mufti-led PDP-BJP coalition government in June 2018, then Governor, the late Satyapal Malik, unfurled the tricolour for two years, August 15, 2018, and August 15, 2019. PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti was the last Chief Minister of the erstwhile J&K state to preside over the I-Day function in Srinagar in 2017. In his I-Day address, Omar said over six years had passed since the people of J&K last heard their representative address them from the venue. 'It has been 11 years since I last spoke from this platform as Chief Minister of a state,' he said. 'In these 10–11 years, a lot has changed. When I was standing here last time, I was CM of the J&K state, in this country we had our own identity, we had a special status, we had our own flag and our own constitution. Today, none of those remain. Today, we don't even have statehood,' he said.
