Jammu and Kashmir CM raises Kashmir shawl seller’s thrashing issue with Uttarakhand CM; Police lodge FIR, says JKSA

J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday (January 29, 2026) raised the issue of the thrashing of a Kashmiri shawl seller with Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, following an uproar. Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand police lodged a First Information Report into the incident.

In images that went viral online, the victim, identified as Tabish Ahmad, 18, was reportedly beaten up and left with head injuries at Vikas Nagar area of Uttarakhand on Wednesday (January 28).

“This recent series of attacks, including in Himachal Pradesh, and now this one, is unacceptable and must stop. It can’t be claimed that J&K is an inalienable part of India while people from Kashmir, in other parts of the country, live in fear for their lives,” Mr. Abdullah said.

He said the J&K government will step in wherever necessary and will do whatever is needed to ensure these incidents are not repeated. “I hope the Home Ministry, Govt of India will also sensitise other states on the same lines,” Mr. Abdullah said.

The J&K Students Association (JKSA), a pan-India students’ group that tracks such incidents of harassment of Kashmiris, raised the issue with Deepam Seth, Director General of Police, Uttarakhand.

“The DGP informed the Association that the authorities have taken serious and stringent cognisance of the case and that immediate legal action has been initiated,” JKSA national convenor Nasir Khuehami said.

The FIR has been registered against Sanjay Yadav and one other individual under Sections 117(2) and 352 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). “The prime accused, Sanjay Yadav, has been taken into custody, and further legal proceedings are currently underway,” Mr. Khuehami said.

He said the DGP assured “strongest possible action to prevent any form of communal intimidation and to ensure the safety, dignity, and constitutional rights of Kashmiri students and citizens in the State”.

“No pressure, compromise, or settlement attempt would be allowed to derail the prosecution and that the investigation would proceed strictly on merit to establish the full sequence of events, identify any additional accused, and fix responsibility under the law,” Mr. Khuehami quoted the DGP as saying.

Several parties in J&K condemned the incident. Peoples Democratic Party leader Iltija Mufti said the 18-year-old Kashmiri shawl vendor was assaulted “with iron rods till his bones crumbled”.

“It’s one of many acts of violence against Kashmiris in India where perpetrators know they enjoy institutional impunity. These are not fringe elements anymore. BJP is actively mainstreaming the ‘fringe’ which is no longer on the periphery,” Ms. Mufti said.

The Congress said Ahmed was “brutally beaten with iron rods because he is from Kashmir”. “Since 2014, such incidents have risen day by day, as PM Modi relies on dividing society to stay in power. Such incidents are no longer isolated. They are happening repeatedly, especially in BJP-ruled states, where people are being misled and turned against one another for political gain. The social fabric of our country is being torn apart,” a Congress spokesman said.

The Congress urged the BJP government to “take strict action, hold the perpetrators accountable, and deliver justice to the victim’s family”.

J&K Peoples Conference chief Sajad Lone said the attacks against Kashmiris across the country show no signs of abating. “Even a minor has not been spared. This shows a culture of tolerance across the country to such intolerant incidents.

Regrettably not many voices in the country are perturbed about these events,” Mr Lone said.

CPI(M) leader M.Y. Tarigami said these traders travel across India to earn an honest livelihood, yet repeated assaults reveal a disturbing pattern that demands urgent action and accountability.