Latest news with #13thJuly
India Gazette
a day ago
- Politics
- India Gazette
'Unfortunate elected CM jumps over boundary wall': J-K LoP slams Omar Abdullah
ANI 14 Jul 2025, 23:42 GMT+10 Jammu (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], July 14 (ANI): Jammu and Kashmir Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma on Monday said it was unfortunate that the elected Chief Minister jumped over the boundary wall of Mazar-e-Shuhada and allegedly 'engaged' in a scuffle with police. Reacting to the incident, Sharma said, 'It is very unfortunate that an elected Chief Minister jumps over the boundary wall of Mazar-e-Shuhada and engages in a scuffle with police. 'We are the ones who form laws, we should not take it into our youth can also come onto the streets by holding stones, getting provoked as the chief minister is fighting with the police.' CM Omar Abdullah on Monday jumped over the boundary wall of Mazar-e-Shuhada in Srinagar's Naqshband Sahib to offer prayers after allegedly being stopped by the security forces. The development came a day after the Jammu and Kashmir Police sealed the Martyrs' cemetery and confined top political leaders, including Abdullah, inside their residences. barring them from visiting the Martyrs' Graveyard (Mazar-e-Shuhada), to mark the anniversary of the protesters shot dead by Maharaja Hari Singh's Dogra forces on July 13, 1931. Abdullah said that he did not inform anyone before visiting the Mazar-e-Shuhada since he was house arrested yesterday on Kashmir Martyrs' Day. 'Paid my respects & offered Fatiha at the graves of the martyrs of 13th July 1931. The unelected government tried to block my way forcing me to walk from Nawhatta chowk. They blocked the gate to Naqshband Sb shrine forcing me to scale a wall. They tried to physically grapple me but I was not going to be stopped today,' Abdullah posted on X. The graveyard is attached to the shrine of Khwaja Bahawuddin Naqshbandi. Martyrs' Day in Kashmir which was earlier observed as an official holiday in the State was delisted after the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019. (ANI)
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Business Standard
a day ago
- Politics
- Business Standard
Omar Abdullah grappled by J&K cops as he tries to visit martyrs' grave
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and several cabinet ministers on Monday scaled a wall to visit the graves of the July 13 martyrs in Srinagar after being stopped by police. In a video he shared on his X account, he can be seen walking towards the graveyard with security personnel. Upon reaching there, he climbed the wall to enter the graveyard as the gate appeared to be locked. 'Paid my respects & offered Fatiha at the graves of the martyrs of 13th July 1931. The unelected government tried to block my way forcing me to walk from Nawhatta chowk. They blocked the gate to Naqshband Sb shrine forcing me to scale a wall. They tried to physically grapple me but I was not going to be stopped today,' he said in a post on X. In another video, police personnel can be seen trying to restrict him from entering. Sharing a video of the incident, he further wrote, 'This is the physical grappling I was subjected to but I am made of sterner stuff & was not to be stopped. I was doing nothing unlawful or illegal. In fact these 'protectors of the law' need to explain under what law they were trying to stop us from offering Fatiha.' Many prominent leaders of the Union Territory were kept under house arrest on Sunday, prohibiting them from paying their respects on July 13, which is considered Martyrs Day in the UT, PTI reported. Abdullah also alleged that when he expressed his desire to offer prayer at the graveyard on Sunday, bunkers were set up to stop him. 'It is sad that on the instructions of the people who claim that their responsibility is the security and 'law and order, we were not allowed to offer 'fateha' here. We were kept in house arrest (on Sunday). When gates opened, I expressed to the control room my desire to offer fateha. Within minutes, bunkers were put up and they were not removed late into the night,' Abdullah told reporters, as quoted by PTI. What happened on July 13? On July 13, 1931, a group of Kashmiris gathered outside Srinagar Central Jail to protest the trial of Abdul Qadeer, who called on Kashmiris against Dogra ruler Maharaja Hari Singh. However, Singh's forces opened fire at them. In total, 22 people were killed. Since then, July 13 has been observed as Martyrs' Day in Jammu and Kashmir to honour those who lost their lives. It used to be a public holiday before the reorganisation of the erstwhile state into two UTs in August 2019. The administration dropped the day from the list of gazetted holidays in 2020, PTI reported.
The Hindu
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
J&K CM Omar Abdullah, Ministers visit Srinagar's Mazar-e-Shuhada, says ‘barriers were raised, but so was our resolve'
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, along with his senior Ministers and legislators, on Monday (July 14, 2025), in an act of defiance to the Lieutenant Governor administration's stand on the slain civilians of 1931 reached the Mazar-e-Shuhada in Srinagar and paid tributes. Mr. Abdullah was seen walking up to the Naqsbandh Sahib shrine at Khawaja Bazar, where 22 civilians killed during an uprising against the Dogra ruler are buried. The Chief Minister scaled the fenced wall of the premises because the security forces had blocked the entrance of the graveyard. A police officer made a bid to stop the J&K Chief Minister from offering 'fateha' at the graveyard. National Conference (NC) president Dr. Farooq Abdullah also joined the party leaders to offer floral tributes and recite special prayers for the deceased civilians. A senior Cabinet minister, Sakina Ittoo, rode a two-wheeler to avoid the security checkpoints and reached the site. It comes a day after the L-G administration barred the government and regional parties from paying tributes at the site. The BJP had described the deceased civilians as 'rioters'. The L-G administration dropped July 13 from the official holiday calendar of J&K after the Centre ended J&K's special status in 2019. Paid my respects & offered Fatiha at the graves of the martyrs of 13th July 1931. The unelected government tried to block my way forcing me to walk from Nawhatta chowk. They blocked the gate to Naqshband Sb shrine forcing me to scale a wall. They tried to physically grapple me… — Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) July 14, 2025 'I was pushed, shoved and grappled by 'protectors of the law'. My crime? Wanting to offer Fatiha at the graves of the martyrs of 13th July 1931. The men in uniform sometimes forget the law. I won't be stopped and I won't be browbeaten. Barriers were raised, but so was our resolve,' Mr. Abdullah said. Targeting J&K L-G Manoj Sinha, Mr. Abdullah said, 'It is unfortunate. Those who claim their only responsibility is law and order — we were not allowed to offer 'fateha' on July 13. When I told the control room that I intended to visit, a bunker vehicle was parked outside my residence till midnight (on Sunday). Even today they (security forces) tried to stop us by erecting vehicles. If the restrictions were for July 13, under what law was I stopped today?' Mr. Abdullah said. He said this country is known as a free country, 'but they (the L-G administration) think we are their slaves'. 'We are not their slaves. We are servants of our people. They even tried to tear our party flag. If they stop us on July 13, we will visit on the next day or next month. No one can stop us,' the Chief Minister said. Visibly angry over the police action, NC MLA Tanvir Sadiq said it is for the first time in the history of India that 'an unelected government locked up an elected government'. 'What are they trying to tell the world that there is no democracy in J&K? What saddens us more is that no one in Delhi condemned the action. We have been paying tributes to these martyrs for decades in J&K. Those taking decisions do not realise the ground realities of J&K,' Mr. Sadiq said. Meanwhile, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee condemned the J&K L-G administration's actions. 'What is wrong in visiting the graveyard of martyrs? This is not only unfortunate, it also snatches the democratic right of a citizen. What happened this morning to an elected Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is unacceptable. Shocking. Shameful,' Ms. Banerjee said, in a tweet. What is wrong in visiting the graveyard of martyrs? This is not only unfortunate, it also snatches the democratic right of a citizen. What happened this morning to an elected Chief Minister @OmarAbdullah is unacceptable. Shocking. Shameful. — Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) July 14, 2025 Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq posted a sarcastic statement on X over the police action. 'Power teaches little, Powerlessness teaches more! Today the CM sahab tasted the bitter medicine of authoritarian high-handedness and subsequent helplessness that common Kashmiris face everyday in different forms, as all agency and space are denied to them. Hoping this experience shifts his focus to what is the first priority of every people — upholding their dignity and their fundamental rights and working sincerely towards its restoration,' the Mirwaiz said. Power teaches little, Powerlessness teaches more! Today the CM sahab @omarabdullah tasted the bitter medicine of authoritarian high handedness and subsequent helplessness that common Kashmiri's face everyday in different forms, as all agency and space is denied to them. Hoping… — Mirwaiz Umar Farooq (@MirwaizKashmir) July 14, 2025 Meanwhile, J&K Peoples Conference (JKPC) president Sajad Lone said it was all scripted. 'For a moment I was impressed. But now that you have given a ball-by-ball commentary of your so-called struggle in reaching the Martyrs Graveyard, I will bet my life. It was all scripted,' Mr. Lone said.
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Business Standard
a day ago
- Politics
- Business Standard
Omar Abdullah scales wall to visit July 13 martyrs' graves in Srinagar
July 13 used to be a public holiday in J&K until the state's reorganisation into two UTs in August 2019. It was removed from the list of gazetted holidays by the administration in 2020 New Delhi Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and several cabinet ministers on Monday scaled a wall to visit the graves of the July 13 martyrs in Srinagar after being stopped by police. In a video he shared on his X account, he can be seen walking towards the graveyard with security personnel. Upon reaching there, he climbed the wall to enter the graveyard as the gate appeared to be locked. 'Paid my respects & offered Fatiha at the graves of the martyrs of 13th July 1931. The unelected government tried to block my way forcing me to walk from Nawhatta chowk. They blocked the gate to Naqshband Sb shrine forcing me to scale a wall. They tried to physically grapple me but I was not going to be stopped today,' he said in a post on X. In another video, police personnel can be seen trying to restrict him from entering. Sharing a video of the incident, he further wrote, 'This is the physical grappling I was subjected to but I am made of sterner stuff & was not to be stopped. I was doing nothing unlawful or illegal. In fact these 'protectors of the law' need to explain under what law they were trying to stop us from offering Fatiha.' This is the physical grappling I was subjected to but I am made of sterner stuff & was not to be stopped. I was doing nothing unlawful or illegal. In fact these 'protectors of the law' need to explain under what law they were trying to stop us from offering Fatiha — Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) July 14, 2025 Many prominent leaders of the Union Territory were kept under house arrest on Sunday, prohibiting them from paying their respects on July 13, which is considered Martyrs Day in the UT, PTI reported. Abdullah also alleged that when he expressed his desire to offer prayer at the graveyard on Sunday, bunkers were set up to stop him. 'It is sad that on the instructions of the people who claim that their responsibility is the security and 'law and order, we were not allowed to offer 'fateha' here. We were kept in house arrest (on Sunday). When gates opened, I expressed to the control room my desire to offer fateha. Within minutes, bunkers were put up and they were not removed late into the night,' Abdullah told reporters, as quoted by PTI. What happened on July 13? On July 13, 1931, a group of Kashmiris gathered outside Srinagar Central Jail to protest the trial of Abdul Qadeer, who called on Kashmiris against Dogra ruler Maharaja Hari Singh. However, Singh's forces opened fire at them. In total, 22 people were killed. Since then, July 13 has been observed as Martyrs' Day in Jammu and Kashmir to honour those who lost their lives. It used to be a public holiday before the reorganisation of the erstwhile state into two UTs in August 2019. The administration dropped the day from the list of gazetted holidays in 2020, PTI reported.
News18
a day ago
- Politics
- News18
Omar Abdullah Climbs Wall To Offer ‘Fatiha' At Martyrs' Graveyard Day After ‘House Arrest'
The visit came a day after the administration, led by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, barred political leaders from holding events marking the July 13 anniversary Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday climbed over a wall to enter the Martyrs' Graveyard in Srinagar's Nowhatta area and pay tributes, after being stopped by authorities. Accompanied by party leaders and cabinet ministers, Abdullah walked from Nawhatta Chowk after access to the site was restricted. A video accessed by CNN-News18 shows him scaling the gate of the Naqshband Sahib shrine to reach the graveyard. 'Paid my respects & offered Fatiha at the graves of the martyrs of 13th July 1931. The unelected government tried to block my way forcing me to walk from Nawhatta chowk. They blocked the gate to Naqshband Sb shrine forcing me to scale a wall. They tried to physically grapple me but I was not going to be stopped today," Abdullah posted on X. This is the physical grappling I was subjected to but I am made of sterner stuff & was not to be stopped. I was doing nothing unlawful or illegal. In fact these 'protectors of the law" need to explain under what law they were trying to stop us from offering Fatiha — Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) July 14, 2025 The visit came a day after the administration, led by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, barred political leaders from holding events marking the July 13 anniversary, observed in memory of 22 people killed during protests against the Dogra rule in 1931. Several NC leaders alleged that they were placed under house arrest on Sunday to prevent them from participating in the observance. view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
