Kathua killings: Terrorism will not be allowed to raise its head in Jammu, says LoP Sharma

Jammu, Mar 9 (PTI) A day after three bodies were recovered from near a waterfall in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district, senior BJP leader Sunil Sharma on Sunday said terrorism which has been buried in Kashmir will not be allowed to raise its head in Jammu.

Addressing protesters gathered to condemn the killings in Billawar area of Kathua, the Leader of Opposition in J&K Assembly said terrorists have come up with a new modus operandi where they are not using weapons to kill people only to create confusion.

Sharma, accompanied by party MLAs Satish Sharma and Rajiv Jasrotia, who visited Billawar also said he briefed Union Home Minister Amit Shah about the incident. “He (Shah) asked me to tell the people of Billawar that he is standing behind them.”

Meanwhile, senior Congress leaders including former MP Choudhary Lal Singh were barred by police from visiting the area, drawing strong protest by the party.

The bodies of Varun Singh (15), his paternal uncle Yogesh Singh (32) and maternal uncle Darshan Singh (40) were found from the Ishu nullah in the remote Malhar area in the higher reaches of Kathua district on Saturday. The trio had gone missing on March 5 during a marriage function.

“We are seeing a new modus operandi where terrorists are not using weapons to kill people…this is an act to create confusion. Jammu region is being deliberately targeted at the behest of Pakistan which wants to put hurdles in India becoming the world power,” Sharma told the gathering at Phinter Chowk in Billawar.

“Terrorism has been buried in Kashmir and will not be allowed to raise its head in Jammu. The terror ecosystem supporting terrorists will be uprooted but we need to stay together and not get divided,” he said.

BJP workers held massive protests across Kathua including Billawar where a complete shutdown was observed to protest the killing of three persons.

Congress leader Singh and party colleague Manohar Lal Sharma, a former minister, were stopped by police enroute to Billawar to express sympathy with the bereaved families.

“This is ironic that the BJP leaders are facilitated while we are stopped to meet the families of the deceased. I have visited the area even during the peak of terrorism,” Singh, who is also a former minister, told reporters.

He said this is for the first time that such a situation had emerged in Kathua district and it reflects the alleged failure of the home ministry which is directly controlling the law and order situation in J&K.

“We demand an inquiry to identify the culprits and a compensation of Rs 10 lakh and a government job for the families of the deceased,” Singh said.

Meanwhile, protesters shouted slogans and torched Pakistani flags at different places in Jammu and Kathua districts in protest against the killings.