We shall overcome

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his monthly and the most widely heard radio programme Mann ki Baat made it clear that “Nyay ho kar rahega (Justice will be done)”. And in that moment, he spoke for millions of Indians whose hearts have been aching since the news of the Pahalgam terror attack broke. Twenty-six lives were lost in a senseless act of violence at the tourist resort. And justice is the least we owe those who are gone and those they leave behind.

The Prime Minister rightly called the attack a sign of desperation. It happened at a time when Kashmir seemed to have come a long way on the road to peace. And tourism was one of its most conspicuous features. Last year, 2.95 million tourists - among them 43,000 foreign tourists - visited Kashmir, up from 2.71 million in 2023 and 2.67 million in 2022. Pahalgam was the place that rivalled Gulmarg and Srinagar in drawing most of the tourists. Now, all seems to have

The PM promised action, saying that the Pahalgam terror attack came at a time when peace and prosperity were returning to Kashmir and that the terrorists and masterminds of terror wanted Kashmir to be destroyed again. However, while Kashmir is in a state of shock, people this time around have come out on the roads to protest against the killings.

The Valley has also observed a spontaneous shutdown. In fact, Pahalgam protested on Sunday as well. There is hope that in the coming days, Kashmir will regain its composure and be in a position to welcome tourists again. Situation is already changing for the better. A trickle of tourists is already wending its way back to the Valley, some of them even going to Pahalgam. This should be the spirit. It is this spirit that has helped Kashmiris and people from the rest of the country to bounce back after every tragedy. And we shall overcome the odds this time also.