New Delhi: National Conference (NC) president and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah on Saturday reaffirmed that “Kashmir was and will always be a part of India”. Abdullah was on a visit to Pahalgam, where a deadly terrorist on April 22 left 26 people dead, mostly tourists.
During his visit, Abdullah also interacted with tourists and grieving families, saying that the people of the Valley would not be cowed by terrorism. “The people who wanted to spread fear have lost. It has been proven today that we are not going to get scared. Kashmir was and will always be a part of India. People want terrorism to end — it’s been 35 years. We want progress. We want to move forward. We will become a superpower one day,” Abdullah told reporters.
‘Murderers of humanity’
The veteran leader, accompanied by NC MLA Altaf Kaloo, also visited the family of Syed Adil Hussain Shah, a local pony ride operator who lost his life while rescuing tourists during the attack. Consoling Shah’s father, Abdullah hailed Adil as a martyr. “He sacrificed his life; he was not afraid of the guns of the beasts. This is insaniyat (humanity), this is Kashmiriyat. One who is afraid is dead,” he said.
Calling the perpetrators of the attack “murderers of humanity”, Abdullah declared that those behind such acts would “rot in hell”. He added, “We have to fight them with courage. We will never be happy and prosperous, and we can never move forward until we fight them.”
In the aftermath of the attack, the Union government announced a series of diplomatic measures against Pakistan, including suspending bilateral trade, closing the Attari Integrated Check Post, suspending the Saarc Visa Exemption Scheme for Pakistani nationals, reducing diplomatic staff, and suspending the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) of 1960.
Abdullah on IWT suspension
Commenting on the IWT suspension, Abdullah reiterated his longstanding demand for a review of the treaty, arguing that Jammu and Kashmir had suffered losses due to its restrictions. “We have been saying for a long time that we need to revisit the IWT. We are suffering losses because of it. The rivers are ours but we are suffering,” he said.
Declining to engage with provocative remarks made by former Pakistan foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, Abdullah stated, “If we go by Bilawal Bhutto’s statements, we cannot move forward.”
During his visit, Abdullah took time to meet with tourists in Pahalgam, assuring them of the region’s safety and posing for selfies. “The biggest message after the incident is that the tourists are not scared,” he remarked.
