J&K Youth Congress Stages Massive Protest in Jammu Against Centre Over Kathua Killings

“Centre Has Failed to Protect Civilians in J&K, Terrorism Now Spreading to Jammu” Sawhney 

“Is This Why J&K Was Made a UT? Crime and Terrorism Are Rising While Centre Remains Silent”: Sawhney

J&K Youth Congress (JKPYC) on Monday staged a massive protest in Jammu against the central government following the recent killing of three youth in Kathua district by terrorists. On the direction of IYC President Uday Bhanu Chib and IYC Incharge J&K Maan Singh Rathore, the protest was organised by JKPYC General Secretary Anirudh Sawhney. The protesters expressed outrage over the rising terror incidents in the Union Territory and criticized the government for its failure to protect civilians. Amid slogans against the ruling dispensation, the demonstrators burned an effigy of the Union Home Minister as a symbolic gesture, demanding accountability for the increasing security lapses. The Youth Congress members stated that terrorism, which was previously concentrated in the Kashmir Valley, has now shifted dangerously to the Jammu region, raising serious concerns about the security situation.  

Speaking at the protest, PYC State General Secretary Anirudh Sawhney stated, that it is alarming that terror attacks are now increasing in districts like Kathua, Udhampur, and Rajouri, where such incidents were rare in the past. The government claims to have brought stability to J&K, but the reality is that terror activities have only increased since 2014. More than 390 civilians have lost their lives in terrorist attacks since then, and there have been at least 1,750 terror incidents in the last decade. The government is doing nothing to prevent such attacks. Instead of ensuring security, they are busy making hollow claims of normalcy, he stated. He further added that the government must provide a clear plan of action to protect civilians and not just resort to temporary measures each time an attack takes place.  

Sawhney also criticized the LG administration of J&K and stated, “Is this why Jammu and Kashmir was turned into a Union Territory? The law and order situation has not improved in any way, in fact, the opposite is true. Crime in Jammu city is at an all-time high, terrorism has now gripped the Jammu region as well, and even the LG administration is unable to control the situation. The central government cannot continue to ignore these facts. People in Jammu and Kashmir are living in fear, and the failure of security agencies to prevent such attacks raises serious concerns about intelligence and operational preparedness. 

Speaking during the protest, Divyansh Singh, 

Ranjoth Singh and Amit Sial said that J&K Youth Congress calls for the resignation of the Union Home Minister, holding him responsible for the worsening security situation. The centre cannot ensure the safety of the people of J&K and people feel that enough is enough. The people of this region deserve peace, not empty promises. We also demand the immediate restoration of statehood to J&K, which has been arbitrarily taken away from us, they said. The people of J&K should not be treated as second-class citizens under an unelected administration. 

Also speaking during the agitational protest, Ajay Lakhotra said that the government must act now and take concrete steps to eliminate terrorism instead of using J&K as a political tool, they asserted. He further said that the JKPYC leaders have vowed to continue their agitation until their demands are met and will continue to urge the government to take security concerns in J&K seriously before more innocent lives are lost. He stressed that the government must answer why terror attacks continue to rise despite its claims of development and security improvements.  

Youth Congress leaders including Surinder Kumar, Divyansh Verma, Happy Randhawa, Rahul Tandon, Sunny Parihar, Tanveer Singh, Anmol Kohli, Rishabh Kohli, Gaurav Sharma, Sardari Lal Bitti, Akhil Bogia, Raghav Khajuria, Anuj Sharma, Nishant Sharma, Tableen Bhoparai, Mahmood Kadri, Rahul Sharma, Rakesh Chamiyal, Sahil Dogra, Rohit Gupta, Amir Rathar, Aditya Sharma and others participated in the protest.