Omar condemns killing, says such abhorrent attacks must be condemned

Insight Online News

Srinagar, Oct 19 : A day after a nonlocal worker was shot dead, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said these attacks are abhorrent and must be condemned in the strongest possible terms.

Ashok Chouhan, hailing from the Banka district of Bihar, was shot dead by militants in Jammu and Kashmir’s Shopian district on Friday. His bullet-ridden body was recovered from the Wachi area of Shopian.

The killing of the non-local came two days after Omar took oath as the chief minister of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

Omar on Saturday condemned the attack.

“Very sorry to hear about the death of Ashok Chouhan at the hands of militants in South Kashmir. These attacks are abhorrent and must be condemned in the strongest possible terms. I send my condolences to the family and loved ones of the deceased,” Omar said in a post on X.

Since the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status in 2019, militants have regularly targeted non-local workers and minority members in the Valley. These attacks significantly increased in 2021 and 2022.

This year, four non-locals have been killed by militants in three different attacks in Kashmir.