Mehbooba Mufti meets a family member of the 22-year-old tourist killed in stone pelting. (Source: Express photo: Shuaib Masoodi)
A day after a tourist from Chennai was killed in stone-pelting during a protest in Srinagar, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday reiterated that without “meaningful dialogue, Jammu and Kashmir will get pushed deeper into this vortex of gloom”.
Saying she has no words strong enough to condemn the action, Mufti on Twitter wrote, “Its truly heartbreaking when a family saves for years to realise their dream of visiting Kashmir & while they are here they face their worst nightmare. Without a sustained, meaningful dialogue & outreach, not just from the govt but from the entire country, J&K will get pushed deeper into this vortex of gloom. My deepest condolences to the deceased’s family & my prayers go out to the girl who was injured in the same incident.” On Monday, Mehbooba who met the family of the tourist killed said, “My head hangs in shame.”
Twenty-two-year-old R Thirumani from Chennai was on his way to a resort in Gulmarg with his parents when their car was stoned by protesters. This is the second incident this month in which tourists were targeted by stone-throwing protesters. On May 1, five tourists were injured when three vehicles were stoned at Aishmuqam in Anantnag.
Without a sustained, meaningful dialogue & outreach, not just from the govt but from the entire country, J&K will get pushed deeper into this vortex of gloom. My deepest condolences to the deceased’s family & my prayers go out to the girl who was injured in the same incident. 2/2
— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) May 8, 2018
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also condemned the incident. “Absolutely unfortunate. For a tourist to be killed, it’s absolutely condemnable,” she said reported ANI.
Opposition National Conference working president Omar Abdullah targeted the BJP-PDP government, saying the alliance has failed. “We’ve killed a tourist by throwing stones at the vehicle he was travelling in. Let’s try and wrap our heads around the fact that we stoned a tourist, a guest, to death while we glorify these stone pelters & their methods…How much blood will have to be shed in Kashmir before the Hon PM realises the gravity of the situation in J&K? When will enough finally be enough?”
Jammu and Kashmir DGP SP Vaid also called the incident as unfortunate and requested the people to help police nabbing violent protesters. “This is the last thing we wanted Kashmir to see. People of Kashmir are known as good hosts.I request the civil society and all elders to identify such people and hand them over to Police,” he said, reported ANI.
Meanwhile, Congress leader P Chidambaram also targeted the coalition government as the core of Kashmir’s problem and asked Mehbooba to quit the “unholy, opportunistic alliance.” “The central government’s muscular, militaristic approach to the J&K issue has driven the State towards the present catastrophic situation,” he wrote on Twitter on Tuesday.