Srinagar, July 13 — Jammu & Kashmir’s former Chief Minister and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah equated the July 13 massacre of 1931 to the infamous Jallianwala Bagh, asserting it as a defining moment in Kashmiri resistance under colonial rule. His remarks came during widespread restrictions that prevented political leaders from paying homage at Srinagar’s Mazar‑e‑Shuhada today.
On social media platform X, Abdullah expressed sharp criticism of the authorities’ actions, calling the home lockdowns, bridge closures, and deployment of police and central forces as “jailers” a “blatantly undemocratic move”. “13th July massacre is our Jallianwala Bagh. The people who laid down their lives did so against the British… What a shame that true heroes who fought against British rule in all its forms are today projected as villains only because they were Muslims,” he posted.
Abdullah lamented the denial of permission for political leaders to visit the Martyrs’ Graveyard, a gesture he described as symbolic of the continued suppression of Kashmiri historical consciousness.
Abdullah urged political recognition of Kashmir’s martyrs in the same spirit India honors its national icons, drawing parallels with Mahatma Gandhi and Bhagat Singh. He echoed PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti’s sentiment that mutual acceptance of each other’s heroes—“from Mahatma Gandhi to Bhagat Singh”—would help close the emotional divide between Delhi and Kashmir
