4 students among Kulgam victims

Suhail A Shah
Kulgam, October 22

Mohammad Muqeem was a bright pupil. He was studying for his Class XII English exam when a gunfight erupted on Sunday, hours before daybreak. Distracted by the sound of explosives, he came out of his house, as did many other residents of Laroo village in Kulgam district.

At about 9 am, all turned quiet and Muqeem and his brother Adnan left for the encounter site with friends. Muqeem never got back. He and six more died in a blast as somebody stepped on an unexploded shell. 

“My son passed matriculation with distinction and wanted to pursue higher education in sociology,” said  Hafeezullah Bhat, crestfallen. Muqeem and some others were standing on a tin sheet that was ripped off the house where the encounter took place when the blast occurred. 

Muqeem (16), was the first casualty.  

Besides Muqeem, three more students were killed — Uzair Ahmad in Class VI, who was barely 12 years old, Talib Maqbool Laway (19), a student at Kulgam Government College, and Irshad Ahmad (21), who was in the second year of graduation. Laway’s widowed mother, an anganwari worker, and his sister were speechless.

Victim Javaid Ahmad Lone (23), a resident of Havoora village, drove a mini bus for a living. He is survived by his wife, a year-and-a-half-old son and parents. Mansoor Ahmad Dar (21) of Bogund village, who had dropped out of college, was a cable operator.