Kashmir
Since the armed conflict began in 1989, Indian security forces in Kashmir have been accused of massacres of protesters and mourners (Gawkadal, Hawal, Sopore, Bijbehara), mass rape (Kunan Poshpora), staged killings of civilians (Pathribal, Amshipora) and thousands of enforced disappearances. Thousands of Kashmiris have been held without trial under the Public Safety Act, and thousands of bodies lie in unmarked graves. In 2010 and from 2016 security forces met street protests with live fire and pellet guns. When India ended the region's special status in August 2019, it detained thousands, shut the internet for about 550 days and closed the Jamia Masjid; arrests under anti-terror law, including of rights defender Khurram Parvez, followed.
Key numbers
Who is responsible
The Government of India and the Jammu and Kashmir administration; the Indian Army (incl. Rashtriya Rifles), Border Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force, Jammu and Kashmir Police and the National Investigation Agency, as the sources name them.
Timeline
- 1990 Gawkadal, Handwara, Zakoora-Tengpora and Hawal: protesters and mourners shot dead.
- 1991 Kunan Poshpora: soldiers accused of mass rape during a night search.
- 1993 Sopore (at least 53 killed) and Bijbehara (43–51 killed) massacres by the BSF.
- 2000 Pathribal: five villagers killed and called foreign militants.
- 2010 Summer protests: over 100 civilians killed by security forces.
- 2011 SHRC inquiry finds 2,730 bodies in unmarked graves.
- 2016 After Burhan Wani's killing, live fire and pellets on protesters; thousands injured.
- 2019 Special status ended; thousands detained, internet cut, Jamia Masjid closed.
- 2020 Amshipora: three labourers killed in a staged encounter.
- 2021 4G restored after ~550 days; Khurram Parvez arrested under UAPA.
- 2025 After the Pahalgam attack, about 1,900 detained and suspects' family homes blown up.
Records (20)
Public Safety Act detentions
The Jammu and Kashmir government said in reply to an RTI request that 16,329 people were detained under the Public Safety Act from 1988 to mid-2014, almost all from the Kashmir valley. The law allows detention without charge or trial for up to two years; Amnesty calls it a 'lawless law'.
16,329 detained
Source: The Wire · Amnesty International
Enforced disappearances
The Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) says more than 8,000 people have been subjected to enforced or involuntary disappearance in Kashmir since 1989, most after being taken by security forces; it calls this a conservative figure.
8,000 detained
Source: Kashmir Life · Outlook India
Unmarked graves of north Kashmir
A State Human Rights Commission police team found 2,730 bodies in unmarked graves at 38 sites in Baramulla, Bandipora, Handwara and Kupwara; its 2 July 2011 report said at least 574 were identified as local Kashmiris, not foreign militants as police had claimed.
2,156–2,730 killed
Source: Human Rights Watch · Kashmir Life
Gawkadal massacre
On 21 January 1990 CRPF troops fired on protesters at Gawkadal bridge in Srinagar who were marching against house-to-house searches the night before. About 50–52 were killed and more than 250 injured; the official count was 21–28.
21–52 killed
Source: Kashmir Life · Deccan Herald
Handwara massacre
On 25 January 1990 the Border Security Force fired on protesters in Handwara, Kupwara district; reported tolls range from 9 to 21 civilians killed.
9–21 killed
Source: Wikipedia (1990 Handwara massacre) · APP
Zakoora and Tengpora killings
On 1 March 1990 troops opened fire on demonstrators at Zakura crossing and later at Tengpora bypass in Srinagar; 47 people were reported killed. No action was taken against anyone.
47 killed
Source: Kashmir Life · Amnesty International (urgent action)
Hawal massacre
On 21 May 1990 CRPF troops fired on the funeral procession of Mirwaiz Muhammad Farooq at Hawal, Srinagar. Reports put the dead at more than 60; a state human rights commission finding cites 35, and a CRPF inquiry named 15 of its men.
35–60 killed
Source: Kashmir Life · Greater Kashmir
Kunan Poshpora mass rape
On the night of 23 February 1991, during a search operation in Kunan and Poshpora villages, Kupwara, soldiers were accused of raping women of the villages. The police report listed 23 women; Human Rights Watch put the number of survivors at up to 100. A 1991 Press Council team called the charges fabricated; survivors are still seeking justice.
Source: Dawn · Amnesty International (1991)
Sopore massacre
On 6 January 1993 BSF men killed at least 53 civilians in Sopore and burned some 400 shops and 75 houses. Amnesty International called it a case study of extrajudicial executions; local sources put the dead at 57.
53–57 killed475 mosques & sacred places destroyed
Source: Amnesty International · Greater Kashmir
Bijbehara massacre
On 22 October 1993 BSF troops fired on a procession in Bijbehara; the NHRC described 43 civilians killed, other counts give 51.
43–51 killed
Source: The Wire · Wikipedia (1993 Bijbehara massacre)
Pathribal killings
On 25 March 2000 the army said it had killed five foreign militants at Pathribal; the CBI later found through DNA tests that all five were local civilians and charged five army officers with a staged encounter.
5 killed
2010 unrest killings
After teenager Tufail Ahmed Mattoo was killed in firing by security forces on 11 June 2010, months of protests and shutdowns followed. Official figures put the civilian toll at about 101–111 by the autumn. Cases were registered against 6,563 people.
101–111 killed
2016–2018 protest killings
After the killing of Burhan Wani on 8 July 2016, security forces met mass protests with live fire and pellet guns. The UN human rights office cites estimates that 130–145 civilians were killed by security forces from mid-July 2016 to March 2018; the state government counted 51 killed and about 9,000 injured from July 2016 to February 2017 alone.
130–145 killed
Source: UN OHCHR report (14 June 2018) · Deccan Herald
UAPA and PSA arrests since 2019
More than 2,300 people in Jammu and Kashmir were arrested under the anti-terror UAPA law from 2019 to mid-2021, and nearly 1,000 were detained under the Public Safety Act; about 46% of the UAPA accused were still in jail.
2,300–2,364 detained
Source: The Wire · The Kashmir Walla
August 2019 mass detentions
When India ended Jammu and Kashmir's special status on 5 August 2019, authorities detained thousands, including former chief ministers. Government sources told reporters of at least 4,000 detained by mid-August; the Home Ministry later said 7,357 people were arrested after the move and 396 held under the PSA.
4,000–7,357 detained
Source: Dawn · The Kashmir Walla
Jamia Masjid Srinagar shut
From 5 August 2019 authorities kept Srinagar's historic Jamia Masjid closed for Friday prayers for 19 weeks and held its imam, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, under house arrest for four years; the mosque has been shut on many Fridays since.
Source: The Kashmir Walla · The Wire
552-day internet shutdown
Internet was cut across Jammu and Kashmir on 5 August 2019; 2G was partly restored in January 2020 and 4G mobile internet only on 5 February 2021, after about 550 days, called the longest shutdown in any democracy.
Amshipora staged killing
On 18 July 2020 soldiers killed three labourers from Rajouri, Imtiyaz Ahmad, Abrar Ahmad and Mohammad Ibrar, at Amshipora, Shopian, and called them terrorists. Police charged Captain Bhupinder Singh of 62 Rashtriya Rifles; an army court recommended a life sentence.
3 killed
Arrest of Khurram Parvez
On 22 November 2021 the National Investigation Agency arrested Khurram Parvez, rights defender and JKCCS coordinator, under the UAPA after raids on his home and office in Srinagar. UN experts called it retaliation for his human rights work and asked for his release.
1 detained
Source: UN News · Amnesty International
Crackdown after Pahalgam attack
After the 22 April 2025 attack on tourists at Pahalgam, police detained and questioned about 1,900 people across Kashmir, and security forces blew up the family homes of about ten suspected militants; families said they got no notice.
1,900–2,000 detained9–10 mosques & sacred places destroyed
Source: Outlook India · Scroll