Srinagar: Punjabi jeweler gets domicile certificate, terrorists shoot him dead
In a spine-chilling incident, a 70-year-old Punjabi jeweler Satpal Nischal was shot dead in Srinagar weeks after he got a domicile certificate that allowed him to purchase immovable property. A terror outfit, The Resistance Front (TRF), claimed responsibility for his barbaric demise while warning of more attacks. TRF, which was floated recently, is believed to be associated with Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba. Here are more details.
Nischal, who owned a flourishing business, had been living in the J&K capital for almost five decades. Originally from Gurdaspur in Punjab, the Nischal family stayed in Srinagar even in the late 1980s when militancy was at its peak. They chose to not leave the volatile area when Kashmiri Pandits fled from their homes, out of fear of being killed by terrorists.
As per News18, Nischal arrived in J&K as a young boy with his father. After working as a goldsmith for several years, he started his own shop and eventually purchased a house in the posh Indira Nagar locality. His house is not far from the Army 15 Corps headquarters while his shop is situated at the Hari Singh High Street market, reports IE.
On Thursday evening, terrorists fired bullets at Nischal. He was rushed to Shri Maharaja Hari Singh Hospital but didn't survive. Soon, TRF admitted that the murder was its handiwork. Calling "all outsiders" who had received domicile certificates "RSS agents," the outfit stated, "We know your names, we know where you live and we know what you do and we are coming for you."
In a statement, TRF said it will consider all Indians, who come to J&K with an intention of settling down as "RSS agents." It said that it "neutralized an RSS agent who was posing as a businessman." "The individual was an active participant in demographic change and settler colony project run by Hindutva fascists to alter the demography of Kashmir," the terror outfit added.
On the incident, IGP, Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, said, "We are working on both aspects, i.e. business rivalry and the terrorist claim...We will share the details soon." Notably, before the Centre had abrogated Article 370, only residents were allowed to buy land and immovable properties. With the new changes, those who lived in J&K for more than 15 years were permitted to make such purchases.
Meanwhile, one of Nischal's neighbors remembered him fondly. "We never felt that he was an outsider. He was like any other Kashmiri brother. He was very affectionate whenever we visited him. This is the reason everyone here is mourning him," a local named Shabir Ahmad told NDTV. His demise was condoled by former Chief Minister and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah.
Very unfortunate. There can be no justification for this kind of violence. May the soul of the departed rest in peace may his family find strength at this difficult time. https://t.co/Sr0EMZWj7K
— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) January 1, 2021
