Kashmir has never in living memory reacted with shock, shame and anger against an act of terror as it did on Wednesday to rebuke Tuesday’s bloody enactment in Pahalgam.

Revulsion and remorse sprang almost spontaneously across the Valley, and a pall of apprehension loomed over what consequences may befall its populace.

The immediate impact is evident to all — the tourist season, the spine of Kashmir’s economy, lies sundered. No less apparent is the sense of a return to a hard-heeled security regime that will stampede quotidian conduct of life.

Kashmiris have lost hundreds of their own to militant attacks during three and a half decades of militancy but protesting against a militant atrocity would rarely cross their minds. That stoicism melted on Wednesday as they observed a shutdown and took to the streets in hordes to protest the merciless killings of their unknown guests from different parts of the country in Pahalgam.

Slogans of “Not in my name” and “Terrorism is not acceptable” rang out at different protest sites in Kashmir.

Though the grief over the deaths of 26 people, mostly tourists, was widespread, the number of protesters hitting the streets was fewer in comparison to anti-India protests that Kashmir has seen in the past against killings by security forces.
Wednesday’s development, however, was no less a spectacle, a first-of-its-kind Valley-wide public disapproval of a militant crime.

“The numbers are not big but that does not mean we are not hurt. For reasons known to everybody, we are staying away from protests,” a resident in Srinagar’s Nawa Kadal locality said.

Out of reverence for the “azaadi” sentiment or fear of militants, people in Kashmir have largely stayed away from such protests in the past — the only exception being gatherings allegedly sponsored by government agencies.

The Jammu and Kashmir government on Wednesday condemned the “senseless” killings and sanctioned an ex gratia of ₹10 lakh to the next of kin of each of the deceased.

The unusual call for a shutdown to protest terrorism was given by civil society groups, trade and transport bodies and separatist and Islamic clergy led by Hurriyat chief Mirwaiz Umar Farooq. Mainstream political parties, including the National Conference (NC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), extended support to the shutdown, the first time they had done so in decades.

Srinagar’s city centre and the area around the famed Ghanta Ghar, a former separatist citadel and its ground zero, erupted with protests, with scores holding placards and black flags denouncing the killings.

Ghanta Ghar has emerged as the biggest tourist attraction in Kashmir after the 2019 scrapping of special status, which gave visitors a sense that Delhi has finally extricated the Valley from separatists’ hold. Pictures with the clock tower in the background are on the must-do list of every tourist in Kashmir.

Wednesday’s was the first shutdown in Kashmir in years, otherwise a routine occurrence before the 2019 scrapping of Article 370. The government’s iron fist prevented hartals all these years.

PDP president and former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, who led a march, apologised to countrymen and said Kashmiris were ashamed of the attack. The ruling NC too marched to the Lal Chowk city centre of Srinagar to protest the terror strike. Chief minister Omar Abdullah’s two sons — Zamir and Zahir — joined the protest.

Protests were also held in several other places across Kashmir, including Pahalgam.

“This incident has shocked the entire Pahalgam and Kashmir. Everyone is in mourning here. There were slogans that terrorism was unacceptable and people openly called it a murder of humanity,” Pahalgam resident Mohamad Yousuf Gorsi, also the chairman of the District Development Council, Anantnag, told The Telegraph.

Gorsi said the residents were not only protesting because the attack would hit their livelihood but also because the tourists were their valued guests.

Candlelight protests were held on Tuesday night and more were organised on Wednesday evening.

In an unusual move, several leading newspapers in the Valley printed their front pagesin black on Wednesday to express grief. The rare act ofsolidarity came from English and Urdu dailies, including Greater Kashmir, Rising Kashmir, Kashmir Uzma, Aftab,and Taameel Irshad.

The Lok Sabha MP from Srinagar, Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, said the perpetrators of the attack were neither adherents of Islam nor well-wishers of the people of Kashmir.

“Kashmir has endured decades of violence, this pain is familiar to us. We stand in complete and unwavering solidarity with the victims of this gruesome attack. Their loss is ours,” Mehdi, who had earlier voiced concern over unbridled tourism, wrote on X.

The NC MP also took a swipe at Delhi, saying it was another painful reminder that post-370 “normalcy” was only rhetoric, not reality.

Both the Mirwaiz and Mehdi have lost their fathers to militant attacks but the protests over their killings did not descend into anti-India agitations.

Ramban district, which was hit by devastating landslides and flash floods last week, also observed a shutdown against the killings. The protest was jointly organised by Hindus and Muslims.

Government employees observed two minutes’ silence as a mark of respect for the dead, following a plea by Omar.

“In light of the tragic killing of innocent civilians by terrorists in Pahalgam, all government office employees across Jammu and Kashmir are requested to observe a two-minute silence at 3.30pm today as a mark of respect and solidarity,” the chief minister said.

Officials said all shops, schools and business establishments remained closed in Srinagar, while public transport was largely off the roads.