Onlykashmir.in News Desk
The body of a 28-year-old labourer from Kokernag in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district, who had been missing for several days, reached his native village on Monday, plunging the family and local residents into grief. The deceased has been identified as Aijaz Ahmad Dar, son of Abdul Majeed Dar and a resident of Darpora, Hallpora, Gadool, Kokernag, who had left home in search of labour work.
Officials said a missing person report was registered at the police station on September 26. According to the family, Dar had travelled to Srinagar around 20 days before his disappearance and stayed there for approximately 10 days before leaving for Ludhiana in Punjab in search of work. The family said they remained in regular telephone contact with him for about a week, after which his phone was switched off and they were unable to reach him.
As the days passed without news, anxiety deepened in the village. On October 17, residents of Hallpora, along with family members, staged a protest over his continued disappearance, expressing concern for his safety and demanding immediate efforts to trace him. The protest ended peacefully following the intervention and assurances of the SDPO Kokernag and the SHO of Police Station Kokernag.
Dar’s body was subsequently recovered in Punjab and brought to his native village. Once it reached home, family members and local residents appealed to the SSP Anantnag for a fair and thorough investigation. The family alleged that Dar had been murdered and demanded that all circumstances surrounding his death be examined. Police have assured the family that a thorough investigation will be conducted.
The cause and circumstances of the death have not been established in the details available so far, and the family’s allegation remains a matter for the investigating agencies to examine. It is therefore important that the inquiry is conducted without delay and that its findings are shared transparently with the bereaved family.
The case also draws attention to the situation of the many young men from Kashmir who travel to other states each year in search of manual work. Such journeys are often undertaken out of economic necessity, with limited formal arrangements for accommodation or safety, and families back home depend largely on telephone contact to know that their relatives are well. When that contact breaks, as it did in this case, the worry can quickly turn into helplessness, especially when the destination is far away and the family has little direct access to local authorities.
For now, the family and the community await the outcome of the police investigation, hoping that it will provide clear answers about how a young man who left home to earn a livelihood met his death.
