Properties seized, dozens detained in intensified IIOJK operations
#LandGrabInKashmir campaign
Srinagar: In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, Indian forces have intensified operations across the Kashmir Valley, carrying out raids, detentions and property seizures as part of a wider campaign against the Kashmiri people on one pretext or another.
According to Kashmir Media Service, operations were launched in several districts, with a major focus on south Kashmir’s Islamabad district, where police conducted search operations at around 20 identified hotspots. Multiple teams raided residences of locals during the operations, further deepening fears of harassment among the population.
Authorities have also initiated surveys of properties which they claim were acquired through illegal means. However, observers say that seizing Kashmiris’ properties has become a new normal in the territory, particularly since August 2019, when hundreds of locally owned properties have been confiscated.
In Islamabad, at least 12 individuals were booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and detained. They were subsequently lodged in Subsidiary Jail Kehribal following approval from executive magistrates.
As part of the crackdown, properties worth approximately Rs 3.5 crore were attached under draconian laws. In Sangam area, two immovable properties linked to Shakeel Ahmad Ganie and Farooq Ahmad Mir, residents of Kreshbal Noorbagh, were seized. The assets include double-storey residential houses and one kanal of land each, valued at over Rs 2 crore and Rs 1.5 crore, respectively. Critics termed such actions as part of a broader policy of dispossession.
Analysts and rights observers maintain that property confiscations in IIOJK are aimed at weakening Kashmiris’ resolve for freedom and form part of what they describe as India’s settler-colonial project in the region. They say the Modi regime is using such measures as political vendetta to deprive Kashmiris of their land, properties and livelihoods, while demolition of houses and repeated cordon-and-search operations continue to add to public distress.
Meanwhile, in neighbouring Shopian district, police displayed photographs and lists of alleged individuals at police stations and posts, a move seen as an attempt to intimidate locals and create an atmosphere of fear.
Observers assert that despite these tactics, the people of Kashmir remain steadfast in pursuing their right to self-determination, adding that such measures will not deter them from their freedom cause.
