CM Omar Abdullah climbs graveyard gate, grapples with security men amid Martyrs’ Day row
Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, former CM Dr Farooq Abdullah, and some ministers of the NC government made a sudden appearance at the Martyrs’ graveyard in Srinagar city on Monday, leading to dramatic scenes of grappling with security forces and a forceful entry.
The visit was to pay tributes to those killed on July 13, 1931, in a firing by the Dogra Maharaja’s forces.
CM Omar Abdullah posted a video on X in which he is seen being physically stopped by the security forces from reaching the Martyrs’ graveyard.
“This is the physical grappling I was subjected to but I am made of sterner stuff & was not to be stopped. I was doing nothing unlawful or illegal. In fact these “protectors of the law” need to explain under what law they were trying to stop us from offering Fatiha,” said the CM.
CM Omar Abdullah, his father Dr Farooq Abdullah, Deputy CM Surinder Choudhary, CM’s advisor Nasir Aslam Wani, some NC ministers and others went to the Martyrs Graveyard in old city Srinagar, offered ‘Fateha’ prayers and laid flowers at the graves of those killed on July 13, 1931 in firing by prison guards when a mob stormed the central jail where a Pathan named Abdul Qadeer was being tried in camera for invoking unrest among the people against the Dogra Maharaja’s rule.
Authorities had imposed restrictions on the day as all applications for permission to visit the graveyard were disallowed by the district magistrate.
The NC leaders, including CM Omar Abdullah, had said on X that people had been ‘locked’ inside their homes to disallow them from visiting the Martyrs Graveyard. These included leaders of the ruling party.
As some ministers travelled in CM’s cavalcade, Education Minister Sakina Itoo rode as a pillion on a scooter to reach the Martyrs Graveyard as her official vehicle was disallowed to go to the graveyard.
CM Omar Abdullah, Dr Farooq Abdullah, Deputy CM Choudhary and advisor Nasir Aslam Wani came to the graveyard in the CM’s cavalcade, which was not stopped by the security forces while it moved towards the Martyrs graveyard.
But near the site, CM Omar Abdullah mounted a barricade and grappled with the deployed security men.
“Paid my respects & offered Fatiha at the graves of the martyrs of 13th July 1931. The unelected government tried to block my way forcing me to walk from Nawhatta chowk. They blocked the gate to Naqshband Sb shrine forcing me to scale a wall. They tried to physically grapple me but I was not going to be stopped today,” wrote the CM on his X handle.
It must be mentioned that before August 5, 2019, when Article 370 was abolished and Jammu and Kashmir bifurcated into two union territories, July 13 was a government holiday.
After August 2019, July 13 and December 5, the birthday of the NC founder, late Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, were removed from the official list of holidays. The NC government has demanded that both these holidays be restored.