Two Chhattisgarh labourers killed in J&K; first attack on migrant workers since Feb 2024

Two migrant labourers from Chhattisgarh died after armed men fired at them in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district late Friday night, officials said on Saturday. The second victim, identified as Bopinder, succumbed to his injuries at SKIMS Hospital in Soura after being referred from Government Medical College Anantnag. The other victim, Deepak Ratray, died on the spot.

Both men, in their twenties, were employed at a brick kiln in the Kelam area of south Kashmir. They had travelled from Chhattisgarh in search of work, officials said.

The attack is the first on migrant workers in the Valley since February 2024, when two labourers from Punjab, Amritpal Singh and Rohit Masih, were shot dead in Srinagar. In October 2021, two workers from Bihar, Raja Reshi Dev and Joginder Reshi Dev, were killed in Kulgam's Wanpoh area in an attack officials described as terror. The latest incident has revived concerns about the safety of migrant labourers in Kashmir.

The killing comes days after Jammu and Kashmir Police head constable Ashiq Hussain Qureshi was shot dead at Anantnag's Lal Chowk while deployed on Amarnath Yatra duty on July 22. That attack was the first terror strike in Kashmir since the April 22 Pahalgam massacre, in which 26 people were killed.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha condemned the attack and directed security forces to intensify anti-terror operations. "I strongly condemn this cowardly act. I have directed our security forces to step up their operations and eliminate the terrorists," Sinha wrote on social media platform X. He said he had spoken to Director General of Police Nalin Prabhat and other senior officials.

Former chief minister and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti also condemned the killings. "They work themselves to the bone far away from home only to feed their families. Unimaginably cruel to target them in such senseless acts of violence," she said.

BJP's Jammu and Kashmir spokesperson Altaf Thakur described the attack as "cowardly, barbaric and inhuman", alleging that its objective was to disturb peace and normalcy in the Union Territory.

Following the attack, security forces launched a cordon-and-search operation in the area to trace those responsible. The attack occurred during the ongoing Amarnath Yatra, which began on July 3. While the pilgrimage through the Pahalgam route has remained suspended since July 19 because of heavy rain and landslides, the Baltal route in Ganderbal continues to remain operational.

Officials said an FIR has been registered and investigations are underway. The incident once again highlights the vulnerability of migrant workers in the region, who often travel alone to remote areas for livelihoods. Local authorities have assured all possible assistance to the families of the victims.