The arrest of a Kashmiri youth for his alleged connection with Dr Adeel Rather, who had earlier been detained in Saharanpur in connection with a suspected terror module, reportedly pushed his father into a state of despair, whereupon he attempted to end his life by setting himself ablaze. A 55-year-old dry fruit seller had set himself on fire in south Kashmir on Sunday morning and has now succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.
Bilal Ahmad Wani had sprinkled petrol and set himself ablaze hours after the police called him to the local police station, while his son, Jasir Altaf, and his brother, Nabeel Ahmad, were already in police custody. An official at Srinagar’s Shri Maharaja Hari Singh Hospital confirmed his death to The Indian Express, stating that he had suffered more than 70 per cent burn injuries. Meanwhile, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti cautioned that the random targeting of young men could drive an entire generation into fear, frustration, and ultimately towards darker paths.
Bilal Ahmad Wani, a dry-fruit seller from Wanpora Qazigund in Kashmir, attempted to set himself ablaze after his son, Jasir Bilal and his brother, Naveel Wani, were detained by the police a few days ago, and he was shifted to the hospital in critical condition as the family struggled to understand the reasons behind the detentions, according to Maktoob Media.
Wani and his son live close to the residence of Dr Adeel Rather, who had earlier been arrested in Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh, in connection with a suspected terror module, while Adeel’s brother, Dr Muzaffar, is believed to be absconding, and the proximity of the two families appears to have intensified fear within the locality.
Mehbooba Mufti warned that the heavy-handed policing was deepening distress among ordinary residents and creating an environment in which frustration could escalate into long-term alienation. She urged the Jammu & Kashmir Police to allow the Wani family access to the detained members, and she emphasised that the refusal to permit even a brief meeting had pushed the father into a state of extreme panic.
Addressing the PDP executive committee, Mehbooba argued that New Delhi must reconsider its current strategy in Jammu & Kashmir, and she contended that people in the region had historically welcomed development-oriented policies but were now confronted with an environment dominated by raids, investigations, and the absence of political dialogue.
She criticised the central government for shutting down channels of communication since 2019, and she maintained that a dialogue-oriented approach was necessary to heal wounds and restore trust.
Mehbooba also advised the Union government to avoid being driven by global narratives that encourage confrontation, and she referenced the approaches of leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi and former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to reinforce the need for outreach. Remembering her father, the late Mufti Muhammad Sayeed, she said he had believed in the BJP’s nationalist credentials, although she felt the party had failed to reciprocate that goodwill.
She further stressed the need for a fair investigation into the Red Fort blast case while cautioning against portraying the entire Kashmiri population as collectively culpable, and she urged political, social, and religious organisations to guide youth towards constructive engagement.
Meanwhile, security agencies have continued operations across the Valley, and the Counter-Intelligence Kashmir unit searched the residence of a doctor in Anantnag as part of the ongoing investigation.