Candlelight marches for soldiers in militancy hub Baramulla district
Srinagar, September 14
On Thursday night, the town of Wagoora in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, once a militancy hub, found itself bathed in the poignant sea of candlelight. In a gesture of unwavering solidarity, the civil society of Wagoora held a candlelight march to mourn and honour the Kokernag gunfight martyrs.
People from all walks of life, united by grief and a sense of duty, joined hands for this sombre procession. They held aloft posters bearing the images of the brave officers who had laid down their lives fighting militants the previous day.
Scores of people holding candles and posters of the martyrs marched through the main market of Wagoora town. The candlelight march commenced at 7 pm from the Main Chowk of the town. The march was led by Tehsildar, Wagoora, Zeeshan Khan. “My last tributes to my friend DSP Himayun and senior Army officers (Col Manpreet Singh and Major Ashish Dhonak) who laid down their lives in Kokernag. Rest in peace officers,” Khan wrote on X.
Wagoora, once a stronghold of militancy, has transformed over the years as its people turned towards mainstream politics, seeking peace and progress. Similar, candlelight marches echoed through the Valley, from Shopian in the south to other corners of Kashmir.
