Pir Dastgeer Massacre Marks 32 Years of Human Rights Abuses in IIOJK

Islamabad, The 32nd anniversary of the Pir Dastgeer massacre, where 18 civilians including a father and his infant were killed by Indian forces in Srinagar, is being observed today in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

According to Kashmir Media Service, on May 8, 1991, Indian paramilitary forces comprising Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and Border Security Force (BSF) fired upon a large gathering at Pir Dastgeer in Khanyar, Srinagar. The civilians had assembled to bury fellow Kashmiris previously killed, resulting in 18 immediate deaths at the event.

The site of the massacre, Dastgeer Khanka Sahib, holds significant cultural and religious importance, housing a historic Quran manuscript and a revered hair strand of Abdul Qadir Gilani. The ongoing impunity enjoyed by Indian forces under laws like the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) and the Public Safety Act (PSA) highlights continuous human rights challenges in the region. The global community’s silence on such violations underscores a persistent disregard for human rights issues when geopolitical interests are at stake.