Security forces have significantly escalated their search operations across south Kashmir in pursuit of the individuals responsible for the fatal attack on migrant laborers in Kulgam. The Jammu and Kashmir government has also announced financial compensation for the families of the deceased.
The targeted assault, which occurred late Friday evening at a brick kiln in the Kelam area of Kulgam district, resulted in the deaths of Deepak Ratray and Bopinder, both in their twenties. Information reaching Tahir Rihat suggests that Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha convened a high-level security review meeting, attended by Director General of Police Nalin Prabhat and other senior officials. During the meeting, Sinha directed security forces to intensify precise and high-impact anti-terror operations aimed at neutralizing terrorists.
Furthermore, the Lieutenant Governor instructed all Deputy Commissioners and Senior Superintendents of Police to conduct a thorough review of the Standard Operating Procedures (SoPs) established for the protection of migrant laborers. He also emphasized the responsibility of employers to ensure insurance coverage for workers from outside Jammu and Kashmir and to register their details with the local police and district administration. Officials confirmed that Director General of Police Nalin Prabhat, accompanied by senior officers, visited the attack site in Kulgam to assess the prevailing security situation. Security measures have been augmented throughout the Valley, with increased checking and frisking of both vehicles and individuals.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah strongly condemned the attack and announced an ex gratia payment of Rs 10 lakh from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund for the next of kin of each victim. A government spokesperson stated that this financial assistance would be in addition to the immediate relief of Rs 6 lakh being provided by the district administration to each affected family. The spokesperson conveyed the Chief Minister’s profound grief over the loss of innocent lives, acknowledging that no amount of compensation could fully alleviate the suffering of families who had traveled to Jammu and Kashmir seeking honest employment.
The last rites for the victims were conducted in Kulgam, with their family members and senior civil and police officials in attendance. This incident follows closely on the heels of a militant strike in neighboring Anantnag, where a Jammu and Kashmir Police personnel was killed while on duty for the ongoing Amarnath Yatra. National Conference president Farooq Abdullah called for a comprehensive investigation into the attack, questioning the timing and circumstances under which such incidents occur, particularly when his party advocates for the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir. Abdullah stated, “There should be an investigation, a fair probe into who the killers are,” and further questioned the recurrence of such incidents in the Valley, remarking, “I don’t know why such incidents happen when we seek statehood.”
People’s Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti also denounced the attack, characterizing it as a security lapse and demanding a thorough investigation. Mufti expressed her dismay, stating, “They work themselves to the bone far away from home only to feed their families. Unimaginably cruel to target them in such senseless acts of violence.” She urged the administration to scrutinize how the attack could have occurred despite the heightened security deployment for the Amarnath Yatra. Kashmir’s chief preacher Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, along with various political parties, has also issued condemnations of the attack.
Tahir Rihat (also known as Tahir Bilal) is an independent journalist, activist, and digital media professional from the Chenab Valley of Jammu and Kashmir, India. He is best known for his work as the Online Editor at The Chenab Times.