Pahalgam attack | Crackdown to nab terrorists should not target entire people of Kashmir, says CM Omar Abdullah

J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah warns against targeting innocent people in crackdown following Pahalgam terror attack.

J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday (May 6, 2025) said the ongoing crackdown to trace the attackers of the Pahalgam terror attack should not come across as “a crackdown on people of Kashmir”.  

“Those responsible for the Pahalgam attack should be taken to task. However, no innocent person should be targeted in the process. It should not come across as if the current crackdown is on the entire people of Kashmir. In this context, we have conveyed our views already,” Mr. Abdullah said.

He cautioned the security agencies to act “with great care and diligently”. 

Pahalgam terror attack LIVE updates - May 6, 2025

The Chief Minister also condemned the Kulgam incident, in which a 23-year-old youth Imtiyaz Ahmad Magray died during a search operation by allegedly jumping into a stream “in a bid to flee”. The police accuse the youth of being an overground worker. However, the family refute it and claim the victim was a labourer “with no links with militants”.

“What happened in Kulgam shouldn’t have happened, but not only Kulgam, there is news of ongoing arrests coming from different places in Kashmir. People of J&K, especially Kashmir, for the first time came on the street against the (Pahalgam) attack and have shown their anger. This message shouldn’t be conveyed to them that they are all being punished,” Mr. Abdullah said.

According to the J&K Police figures, 90 locals have been booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA) and around 2800 questioned or detained since the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in Kashmir. Twenty-six civilians, mostly tourists, died in the attack.