Srinagar
In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, a complete shutdown is being observed in Kupwara town, today, to remember the victims of a deadly massacre carried out by Indian troops in 1994. All shops and other business establishments are closed in the town while traffic is off the road.
Meanwhile, people are visiting the Martyrs Graveyard in the town and offering prayers for the victims of the massacre and other Kashmiri martyrs. Indian troops had mercilessly killed twenty-seven innocent Kashmiris on this day in 1994 to punish the people for observing a shutdown on Indian Republic Day, the 26th January, in the town.
On the other hand, justice continues to elude the families of the victims of the massacre even after the passage of twenty-seven years. Local people had told the media and investigation agencies at that time that a day before the carnage took place, an army officer had asked the local shopkeepers not to observe the shutdown and attend the Republic Day celebrations at the local camp. However, the shopkeepers didn’t turn up at the celebrations. But the next day, when they were opening their shops, Indian soldiers came in trucks and fired at them indiscriminately, killing 27 people and injuring scores of others.—KMS
