Life seems too uncertain, especially for the people of Kashmir valley! Target killing has aroused the fear among the people as to WHO, WHEN, and WHERE will be a victim of a bullet. Within the last month, six cases of the targeted killing took place that included civilians and women. Many terrorists have also been killed, but despite this, the incidents of target killing are increasing day by day. The valley has been a witness to civilians being targeted and attacked by militants and terrorists.
According to reports, there have been at least 16 cases of targeted killings in the last six months that included teachers, police officials, and sarpanches. On Thursday, three people were targeted in a single day. Two of them died. In the morning, Vijay Kumar, a resident of Rajasthan, was shot dead by terrorists in Kulgam. In the evening, two migrant laborers working in a brick kiln in Budgam were fired upon, in which one died.
Since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, the valley has been under the President’s rule. Hence the targeted killings are raising questions about governance in the Kashmir valley, forcing minorities out of the union territory. As a result of these killings, the minorities in the valley have started a protest demanding safety from the central government. According to a report, protests broke out in the valley after Kashmiri Pandit teacher Rajni Bala’s death.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah today met National Security Advisor Ajit Doval to discuss the recent spate of targeted killings in Kashmir. Union Minister of State, Prime Minister’s Office Dr. Jitendra Singh also joined the meeting. The meeting comes on a day when a bank manager from Rajasthan was shot dead by a terrorist in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kulgam in the second targeted attack on Hindus in the Valley in three days.
The bank manager’s killing in Kulgam came within 24 hours of two major incidents in the adjoining Shopian district. A civilian, Farooq Ahmad Sheikh, was injured in a targeted terror attack inside his home last evening. In another incident, three soldiers were injured after an explosion in their vehicle early this morning. One of the soldiers has suffered critical injuries.
The fresh attack also comes amid a widespread protest in the Union Territory by Kashmiri Pandits demanding that they be relocated to safer areas. Members of the community have been protesting since Rahul Bhat, a Kashmiri Pandit, was shot dead inside the magistrate’s office in Budgam last month. About 4,000 Kashmiri Pandits employed in the Valley under a Prime Minister’s rehabilitation package have threatened mass migration as they no longer feel safe. To stop them from leaving, the Union Territory administration put up barricades and locked gates to transit camps.
