On Friday, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) staged a protest in response to a recent series of militant attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, challenging the government’s assertions of peace restoration in the region.
The protest follows a wave of attacks across four locations in the Jammu province—Reasi, Kathua, and Doda districts—between Sunday and Wednesday. These attacks resulted in the deaths of nine individuals, including seven pilgrims and a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawan. Additionally, seven security personnel, 41 pilgrims, and one villager were injured. Two militants were killed during an encounter in Kathua, while a large-scale search operation is underway to locate and neutralize the remaining militants.
Led by PDP additional general secretary Rajinder Manhas and spokesperson S. Varinder Singh Sonu, dozens of party workers marched from the PDP office in Gandhi Nagar. They confronted police barricades and held a brief sit-in near the Jammu-Airport Road before returning to their office.
Manhas expressed concern over the escalating security situation in Jammu, particularly ahead of the annual Amarnath Yatra. He described the attacks as a reflection of a significant security failure, pointing out the discrepancy between the government’s claims of restored normalcy and the current surge in militant activities.
“What type of normalcy is this?” Manhas questioned. “The people of Jammu are frightened by the increase in terror activities. The government needs to wake up and ensure the complete eradication of terrorism.”
PDP spokesperson Sonu emphasized the party’s stance against terrorism and expressed support for government efforts to combat militancy. However, he criticized the government’s contradictory claims regarding the eradication of terrorism following the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, highlighting that new militant activities have emerged in previously peaceful areas of Jammu.
“The terrorists are enemies of humanity,” Sonu stated, urging the government to focus on eradicating terrorism instead of engaging in political posturing. He questioned the nature of the “new J-K” where militancy has spread to new areas within Jammu, which were previously untouched by such violence.
The PDP leaders called for adequate security measures to be implemented for the upcoming annual pilgrimage to the 3,880-meter-high Amarnath cave shrine in the south Kashmir Himalayas.