Collective Punishment: A recently demolished family house in Kashmir.
The brutal terrorist attack on tourists in Baisaran Valley near Pahalgam in Kashmir on Tuesday 22 April 2025 is nothing short of abhorrent. The killing of 26 innocent civilians, most of them Hindus, and the injuring of more than 20 others, must be condemned unequivocally.
There is no justification for such violence. Targeting civilians — whether in Kashmir, Mumbai, or anywhere — is a moral outrage that demands accountability. The perpetrators must be brought to justice through due process.
However, in the aftermath of this heinous crime, the Indian government’s response has crossed a dangerous line. Instead of a focused pursuit of the attackers, we have witnessed a sweeping crackdown that punishes the broader Kashmiri population.
Using copy cat tactics that Israel employs over brutal oppression of Palestinians, the BJP government is meting out collective punishment to Kashmiri civilians including arbitrary arrests, demolition of family houses of suspects and gross violation of human rights of Kashmiris by its military and police.
So far over 1,500 Kashmiris have reportedly been arrested, many with no proven links to the attack. Homes of families of political activists, suspected militants, and even critics of India’s occupation have been demolished, leaving entire families homeless and without recourse.
This is not justice — it is collective punishment, and it is both illegal and deeply immoral.
Kashmiri leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was right when he condemned the Pahalgam attack while urging authorities “not to punish innocent Kashmiri families.” His plea is a reminder that justice must be rooted in fairness, not in vengeance against a community already suffering under decades of military occupation and political suppression.
Politicians across Kashmir, including former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and MP Ruhullah Mehdi, have rightly criticised the government’s indiscriminate actions. Mehdi bluntly stated that Kashmiris are facing “collective punishment,” a chilling reality that has played out in the demolitions of homes and the extrajudicial killings reported by families.
The father of suspected rebel Shahid Ahmad Kutay poignantly asked, “Why was our house demolished?” when his son had left home long ago and his whereabouts remain unknown. In another case, the family of Altaf Lali in Bandipora insisted he was a civilian — yet he was killed in what they claim was a staged encounter.
Even as India mourns the victims of the Pahalgam attack, Islamophobic and anti-Kashmiri sentiments are surging nationwide in India. Kashmiri students face harassment, eviction, and threats.
In Dehradun, far-right groups have openly called for Kashmiri Muslims to leave or face retaliation. This dangerous climate not only violates the basic rights of Kashmiris but also stokes a cycle of hatred that can only breed further violence.
It must also be acknowledged that serious security lapses contributed to this tragedy. The government’s decision to open Baisaran Valley to tourists two months early, without informing security forces, facilitated the attackers.
Yet instead of addressing its own failures, the government is punishing the Kashmiri population at large and together with irresponsible media contributing towards Islamophobia and anti-Pakistan sentiments creating divisions within India and possibly conflict with Pakistan.
True justice means identifying, prosecuting, and punishing the guilty — not exacting retribution on the innocent. Every Kashmiri, like every Indian, deserves the protection of the law.
If India’s democracy is to mean anything, it must apply equally to Kashmir. Otherwise, the cycle of violence will only deepen, with more innocent lives lost on all sides contributing to instability and further suffering in South Asia.
Justice, not vengeance, and diplomacy must guide the way forward in global affairs.
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