Latest news with #Martyrs'
United News of India
13-07-2025
- Politics
- United News of India
Unelected nominees of New Delhi locked up elected representatives of people of J&K: Omar
Srinagar, July 13 (UNI) Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today alleged that he and the elected representatives have been "locked up" and termed it as the 'tyranny of the unelected' in Jammu and Kashmir. Omar, who was in Delhi, returned to Srinagar this evening and shared several pictures on X of a large deployment of police outside his Gupkar home. An armoured vehicle was also seen parked at the gate of his residence. 'To borrow from the late Arun Jaitley Sb - Democracy in J&K is a tyranny of the unelected. To put it in terms, you will all understand today the unelected nominees of New Delhi locked up the elected representatives of the people of J&K,' Omar said on X. 'The unelected government locked up the elected government,' he said in another post. Sources said Omar was originally scheduled to arrive in Srinagar tomorrow, but following outrage over his absence on Martyrs' Day, he returned to the city this evening instead. Earlier in the day, several ministers, MLAs and top leaders of the ruling party and the Opposition were put under house arrest or detained by the J&K Lt Governor administration to prevent them from visiting the Martyrs' graveyard in old city to pay tributes to the 22 people, who were killed during a protest against the rule of Maharaja Hari Singh on July 13, 1931. Authorities sealed all roads leading to the Martyrs' graveyard- also known as Mazar-e-Shohda- in the Nowhatta area, deploying heavy contingents of police and central armed forces in several sensitive areas of Srinagar to maintain order. The Srinagar district administration had last evening denied permission to political parties to visit the graveyard, warning of strict legal action against those violating the order. J&K Chief Minister this morning condemned the restrictions, calling it 'blatantly undemocratic.' 'In a blatantly undemocratic move, homes have been locked from the outside, police & central forces deployed as jailers & major bridges in Srinagar blocked. All to stop people from visiting a historically important graveyard containing the graves of people who laid down their lives to give Kashmiris a voice & to empower them. I will never understand what the Law & Order government is so afraid of,' Omar said in a post on X. He was reacting to a post by the party's chief spokesman and MLA, Tanvir Sadiq, who said that leaders had been confined to their homes. 'Since last night, I like many of my colleagues, including the party leadership at Gupkar, the Advisor to the Chief Minister, and a majority of sitting MLAs have been locked inside my home. This is not just unfortunate; it is a deliberate attempt to suppress remembrance and deny us the right to honour the martyrs of July 13. Such actions are not only unnecessary they are unjustified, deeply insensitive, and reveal a troubling disregard for history,' Sadiq said. Omar further said that those who laid down their lives in 1931 were being wrongly vilified. '13th July massacre is our Jallianwala Bagh. The people who laid down their lives did so against the British. Kashmir was being ruled under the British Paramountcy. What a shame that true heroes who fought against British rule in all its forms are today projected as villains only because they were Muslims. We may be denied the opportunity to visit their graves today, but we will not forget their sacrifices,' he added. PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti also criticised the government's action. 'The day you accept our heroes as your own just as Kashmiris have embraced yours, from Mahatma Gandhi to Bhagat Singh that day, as Prime Minister Modi once said, the 'dil ki doori' (distance of hearts) will truly end. When you lay siege to the Martyrs' Graveyard, lock people in their homes to prevent them from visiting Mazar-e-Shuhada, it speaks volumes. July 13th commemorates our martyrs, those who rose against tyranny, much like countless others across the country. They will always be our heroes,' she said. Several PDP leaders were also placed under house arrest. People's Conference president and Handwara MLA, Sajad Lone, said he too was detained at home and barred from offering tributes. 'This recurring act reflects a deliberate attempt to suppress democratic expression and silence voices of remembrance and dissent,' he said. Apni Party chief Altaf Bukhari urged calm and peaceful remembrance after being prevented from holding a prayer meeting. Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said that while leaders may be jailed, placed under house arrest, or threatened, and graveyards of martyrs may be sealed, 'they live in our hearts and in our memory and will continue to, generation after generation.' July 13 was earlier observed as a public holiday in Jammu and Kashmir but was removed from the official calendar by the Lieutenant Governor's administration, following the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019. Since then, political leaders have been barred from visiting the Martyrs' graveyard. UNI MJR SSP
NDTV
12-07-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Lieutenant Governor's Administration Denies Permission To J&K Parties' Martyrs' Day Request
Srinagar: The Lieutenant Governor's administration in Jammu and Kashmir has denied permission to all political parties, including the ruling National Conference, to attend July 13 Martyrs' Day function in Srinagar on Sunday. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and his father Farooq Abdullah were expected to join the wreath-laying ceremony. In a statement, police said the district administration Srinagar has denied permission and warned strict action against any violator who tries to proceed towards the venue. The police have advised intended participants to "strictly comply with the instructions and refrain from violating the orders issued by the District Administration". The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference had written to J&K Lt Governor Manoj Sinha urging him to restore July 13 as a public holiday in honour of those who sacrificed their lives in 1931 during the struggle against British suzerain Maharaja's autocratic rule. July 13 is an epochal day in the history of Kashmir. It's observed as Martyrs' Day to commemorate the sacrifice of 22 people who led an uprising against the autocratic rule of Maharaja Hari Singh in 1931, which eventually forced the Maharaja to hold the first assembly elections in the history of Jammu and Kashmir. In 1934, the Paraja Sabha - assembly was constituted in J&K, marking the beginning of the democratic process after centuries of autocratic rule, even as Maharaja continued to have sweeping powers on key matters. Since 2020, July 13 as public holiday and also the birthday of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah (National Conference founder) on December 5 have been dropped from the official calendar of public holidays. After winning elections and forming government in October last, the National Conference has been unable to restore these holidays even as it forms the bedrock of its politics. Since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, the Union Territory administration has disallowed any function at the Martyrs' graveyard and even put Kashmiri leaders, including former chief ministers, under house arrest to prevent them from visiting the Martyrs' graveyard in Srinagar. The National Conference termed the L-G administration's order as deeply unfortunate. "On a day of profound historical and emotional significance for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, the District Administration has chosen to bar peaceful tributes to the martyrs of 13th July 1931 at Khawaja Bazar, Nowhatta," said Tanvir Sadiq, chief spokesman of National Conference. It is deeply unfortunate that on a day of profound historical and emotional significance for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, the District Administration has chosen to bar peaceful tributes to the martyrs of 13th July 1931 at Khawaja Bazar, Nowhatta. July 13 is not a routine… — Tanvir Sadiq (@tanvirsadiq) July 12, 2025 Traditionally, the party organises a wreath-laying ceremony at the Martyrs' graveyard before holding a public meeting on July 13. Other regional parties like PDP and Apni party had also announced to observe Martyrs' Day on July 13.
Al Manar
08-03-2025
- Politics
- Al Manar
West Bank Refugee Camps Emptied Amid Escalating Israeli Attacks, UN Warns
The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, has warned that three refugee camps in the northern West Bank have been nearly emptied of their residents due to the escalating attacks by the Israeli occupation military. Israeli occupation soldiers abused Palestinian youths during their raid on the village of Salem near Nablus city in the occupied West Bank last night. — Quds News Network (@QudsNen) March 8, 2025 According to UNRWA's statement on Friday, the camps in Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nur Shams have faced 'widespread destruction to civilian infrastructure, including homes,' leaving many Palestinians with nowhere to return to. The UN body noted that the Israeli occupation forces have begun demolishing more than 16 buildings in the Nur Shams camp, just a week after 11 houses were demolished in the same camp, along with 14 other houses in the Tulkarm Camp. The statement also mentioned 'controlled detonations' in the Jenin Camp around a month ago that left the camp uninhabitable. The destruction caused by the occupation's assault on the Martyrs' neighborhood in Tulkarm refugee camp. — Eye on Palestine (@EyeonPalestine) March 7, 2025 'These large-scale demolitions are an alarming new pattern. They have an unprecedented impact on the Palestinian refugees and seek to permanently change the characteristics of the camps in the northern West Bank,' UNRWA added. Footage reveals the extensive destruction and flattening of buildings caused by Israeli occupation forces during their ongoing invasion of the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. — Quds News Network (@QudsNen) March 7, 2025 The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) corroborated UNRWA's report, stating that the Israeli army's ongoing aggression in the northern West Bank cities and camps continues to have 'devastating humanitarian consequences.' Since the beginning of the Gaza war in October 2023, the actions of the Israeli occupation army and illegal settlers have led to the deaths of at least 930 Palestinians, with nearly 7,000 individuals sustaining injuries in the occupied West Bank. Last July, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) declared that Israel's long-standing occupation of Palestinian territories is illegal, demanding the evacuation of all illegal settlements in the West Bank and East al-Quds.
