NEW DELHI: Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, chairman of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, slammed the killing of another Hindu Kashmiri in the held Valley on Saturday, saying he was shocked and grieved by the senseless act.

A statement by the Mirwaiz’s office condoled with the families of the slain man.“ All Parties Hurriyat Conference expressed shock and grief over the killing of Kashmiri pandit community member Pooran Krishan Bhat of Choudry Gund Shopian today by gunmen.“

The statement said the APHC denounced the killing and stressed that every single life lost in this manner is very painful and sad. The APHC extended condolences to the bereaved family and expressed solidarity with them in their hour of great sorrow.The APHC statement also said that the chargesheet accusing Fahad Shah, editor of online magazine Kashmirwalla and Aala Fazili a PhD scholar of Kashmir University of so called “narrative terrorism” after being booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, is ridiculous to say the least.

APHC said that “coining such outrageous terms to criminalise and penalise dissent and disagreement reveals the further hardening of the authoritarian mindset of the rulers. “Reporting facts, unpalatable to the authorities, has become a crime in these times for which both young men are paying a price. APHC appeals to people of India, media watch and rights organisations to stand up to such state repression and seek the release of all journalists and reporters from J&K lodged in jails in J&K and across India facing such bizarre charges.”

Puran Krishan Bhat was attacked near his residence in the south Kashmir district, and doctors declared Mr Bhat brought dead after he was shifted to a Shopian hospital.

The area has been cordoned off, and a hunt has been launched to catch the criminals, officials said. Mr Bhat has two schoolgoing children — a girl who studies in class 7 and a younger boy who is in class 5 — a relative said.

“He didn’t even step out of his house, used to be indoors. We are very scared,” he added.

Published in Dawn, October 16th, 2022