After ‘house detention’, Omar visits Martyrs’ graveyard, alleges bid to block entry

SRINAGAR — Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, along with his party leaders, scaled a wall to pay tributes at Naqashband Sahib in Srinagar’s old city after being stopped by police personnel. The site commemorates Kashmiri protesters who were shot dead by Maharaja Hari Singh’s Dogra forces on July 13, 1931.

A day after widespread restrictions and house detentions, Omar, accompanied by his father and National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah, the Deputy Chief Minister, Cabinet Ministers, and senior party leaders, visited the Martyrs’ Graveyard and offered Fatiha and floral tributes.

Abdullah launched a scathing attack on the Lieutenant Governor-led administration for attempting to stop NC leaders from visiting Naqashband Sahib. He claimed the “unelected government” tried to prevent him from reaching the shrine, where the graves of the 1931 martyrs are located.

In a series of posts on X, Abdullah said, “The unelected government tried to block my way, forcing me to walk from Nawhatta Chowk. “They blocked the gate to Naqshband Sahib shrine, forcing me to scale a wall. They tried to physically grapple me, but I was not going to be stopped today.”

Sharing a video clip of the incident, Abdullah 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.”

Speaking to reporters at the graveyard, Omar expressed his disappointment, “It is very sad that the people who claim their responsibility is only security and law and order, as per their clear instructions, we were not allowed to offer Fatiha here yesterday. Everyone was kept locked up in their homes early in the morning.”

Recalling yesterday’s events, Omar Abdullah said, “When the gates began to open, I told the Control Room that I wanted to visit the graveyard to offer the Fatiha. Within minutes, a bunker was set up outside my gate and it was not removed until midnight.”

He revealed that today, he deliberately didn’t inform authorities about his plan to visit the graveyard, “I sat in the car without informing them. Look at their shamelessness. Even today, they tried to stop us. They parked their vehicle in the Nowhatta square and set up a CRPF bunker in front of it. They also tried to manhandle us. The police who wear uniforms sometimes forget the law. I want to ask them under what law they tried to stop us today. If there was a restriction, it was for yesterday.”

Abdullah made strong statements about democratic rights, “They say that this is a free country. But sometimes they think that we are their slaves. We are not anyone’s slaves. If we are slaves, then we are the slaves of the people here. If we are servants, then we are the servants of the people here.”

He described successfully overcoming the obstacles, “They wear uniforms and destroy the law. I don’t understand this. But we failed their attempts. They tried to detain us. They tried to tear our flag. But all their attempts were unsuccessful today. We came here and offered the Fatiha.”

The Chief Minister issued a defiant message to the administration, saying, “They forget that these graves belong to our martyrs. They are here all year long. How long will they stop us? We will come here whenever we want. And we will remember these martyrs.”

Martyrs’ Day, which was earlier observed as an official public holiday in Jammu and Kashmir, was removed from the government calendar by the LG administration after the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019. Since then, political leaders have repeatedly been barred from visiting the graveyard on this day.