Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir: “Aap wapas Kashmir jao, aap yahan kaam nahi kar sakte.” (Go back to Kashmir. You cannot work in India, especially in Himachal.) 

These words still haunt 45-year-old Munawar Shah, a Kashmiri shawl seller from the Kupwara district in north Kashmir. 

Shah recalled a cold, crisp morning in January in Himachal Pradesh. He was trudging along a quiet road, his back hunched under bundles of intricately woven Kashmiri shawls and fabrics. 

As he walked, hoping for a good sale for the day, Shah said he was stopped by two men on motorcycles who demanded that he show his entry card and Aadhaar ID. 

Shah said his heart sank, but he resisted, telling the men that he would not show them his ID card and that he was not legally bound to do so.

“If you claim Kashmir is part of India, why can’t Kashmiris work in India,” Shah told them, he said, speaking over a phone call from Himachal Pradesh. 

After a brief argument, the two men, who he said were affiliated with the Hindu right-wing, called “their senior” and knew Shah, and he asked them to leave him alone. 

Shah did not wish to say who “their senior” was. 

“Their senior assured them that I would no longer work there and they should let him go,” he said. “Had I not known their boss, I would have been beaten that day.”

Shah, a father of eight, has sold his wares in different states, but mainly Himachal Pradesh, for the past 30 years. But now, he said,  treatment of Kashmiris had worsened, and there was a “deep hostility” that he could not comprehend.

“Being a Kashmiri and a Muslim makes us vulnerable,” Shah said. “We live in constant fear and don’t feel safe here any more.”

Kashmiris Under Siege 

During winter, Kashmiri traders travel to different states to earn a livelihood, mainly by selling dry fruits and shawls.

These three months of winter are crucial. They depend on the sales of this time to sustain themselves throughout the year, but like Shah, others, too, said there was growing hostility towards Kashmiri Muslims. 

While Islamophobia has increased after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in 2014, Kashmiri Muslims, often branded as enemies, face more profound social isolation and humiliation.  

As calls for the economic boycott of Muslims by Hindu right-wing groups have become widespread in India ((here, here, here & here), Hindus have refused to buy from Kashmiri Muslims, telling them to return to Kashmir. 

Economic marginalisation is destroying their livelihood and means to support their families. 

At least 21 traders from J&K have been harassed and faced intimidation and threats in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Haryana (here and here), Jharkhand, Punjab, and Delhi since 2019, the year a deadly terrorist attack killed over 40 security force personnel in Pulwama in central Kashmir on 14 February.   

According to Nasir Khuehami, the national convenor of the J&K Student Association (JKSA), who has been tracking and publicising the attacks, said at least 15 incidents of intimidation, harassment, and physical assault against Kashmiri traders have been reported from Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, and Punjab in the past four months, but the actual number of cases could be higher, as many cases go unreported.

“Many Kashmiri traders who faced issues in states like Uttarakhand, Punjab, and Haryana don’t have smartphone access, making it impossible for them to reach out,” said Khuehami. 

The JKSA has announced plans for a nationwide toll-free helpline number for Kashmiri shawl sellers.

“In the last decade, since 2014, the situation has worsened, with cases of harassment and targeted attacks on Kashmiri traders and students,” said Khuehami. “However, it has escalated seriously after 2019. On average, we receive two to three harassment cases monthly, mainly from Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, and Haryana.”

In the aftermath of the attack, Kashmiris, including students and traders residing in different parts of the country, faced widespread harassment, eviction threats, and physical assaults and were branded as traitors and terrorists.

Hundreds of students from many northern states, such as Uttarakhand (Dehradun), Delhi, and Haryana, reported being intimidated and harassed, with many forced to vacate their rented accommodations and hostels by landlords and locals. 

In Dehradun, right-wing groups, such as the Bajrang Dal and the Vishva Hindu Parishad, were alleged to have beaten 12 Kashmiri students.

There have been incidents post-cricket matches, particularly those involving India and Pakistan, where Kashmiris, especially students, faced legal action and were booked under sedition charges and anti-terror laws for allegedly supporting teams other than India. 

‘It's Not Just About Kashmiri Shawl Vendors’

Many observers said the Pulwama attack catapulted the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a stunning victory in the general election in May 2019. Three months after that, the Modi government rescinded J&K’s semi-autonomous status and demoted India’s only Muslim-majority state to a union territory, bringing it under direct control of the central government. 

Kashmiri shawl sellers that Article 14 spoke with said that Kashmir was grappling with high unemployment since the abrogation of Article 370, and they had no option but to continue doing what they had been doing for decades across India.

“We are left with no choice but to risk our lives and work here,” said Shah. “We can't go back; we have debts to settle.”

Official Periodic Labour Force Survey data showed that J&K’s unemployment rate was lower than the national average before it lost its statehood and has been higher since—from 5.1% against a national average of 5.8% in 2018-19 to 6.1% against 3.2% in 2023-24. 

According to data from the South Asian Terrorism Portal (SATP), while there has been an 8.6% increase in ‘terrorism-related incidents’ from 2019 to 2024, compared to 2013-2018, there has been a 13.6% decrease in the number of civilians, security forces and terrorists killed in J&K over the same period. 

“The claim that Kashmiris are now happy and fully integrated into India after the removal of Article 370 is untrue, as these attacks prove it, and it’s very sad that these continue to happen,” said Kavita Krishnan, a Delhi-based activist and author, and a former leader of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). 

“The irony is that the government’s justification for removing Article 370 was to bring prosperity and remove the divide between Kashmir and India, but now, their supporters are driving Kashmiris out of other Indian cities, pushing them back into Kashmir,” said Krishnan. 

Iltija Mufti, a leader of the J&K People's Democratic Party (PDP), said, “It's not just about Kashmiri shawl vendors—there are numerous such cases of Kashmiri students as well. They often claim, especially after the abrogation of Article 370, that they have successfully integrated J&K into the rest of India. But the kind of integration they refer to remains unclear.” 

Kashmiri politicians across party lines, including Mehbooba Mufti of the PDP, Altaf Bukhari, the president of the Apni Party, and chief minister Omar Abdullah of the National Conference, have criticised these attacks. 

Mufti said that if Omar Abdullah’s government had failed to protect Kashmiri traders. 

“The people of Jammu and Kashmir gave the National Conference a decisive mandate to fight their aspirations and dignity and uphold their self-respect,” she said. “But I don’t think that’s their focus right now.”

‘I Prefer To Beg’

On 18 January 2025, Shafi Khoja, another shawl seller, boarded the bus at seven in the morning and left for Lodhi Shahpur, 30 km from the room he rents in Malsian village of district Jalandhar in Punjab, to sell his goods. 

Around noon that day, as Koja was walking on the road, he was attacked from the rear by three motorcycle-borne men and stabbed with a knife on his head and legs.

Koja said they stole his belongings, including cash worth Rs 12,000, shawls worth Rs 50,000 and a mobile phone. 

“I couldn’t see anything,” Koja said over a phone call, his voice trembling as he recalled the attack. “Darkness engulfed my eyes. All I knew was that they had taken everything I had—my money, my work, my source of livelihood.”

Koja said that he lay bleeding on the road, helpless and alone for nearly two hours. No one came near him. Then, two fellow Kashmiri workers, who found Koja drenched in blood, took him to hospital. 

Father of four, 38-year-old Koja, also a resident of Kupwara, has travelled across India for 20 years, especially in the winters, and said that he had never felt scared for his life before. 

“No matter how much we deny it, Kashmiris are not safe in mainland India,” said Koja. “It wouldn’t matter if you gave them your blood. They will still not be yours." 

Koja said that he had 12 stitches in his head, six in his leg, and a fractured limb. 

“I still can’t walk,” he said. “I don't know when I’ll be able to work again. I can’t even leave my room.”

“We are hard-working labourers,” Koja said. "To earn a living, we go from house to house, lane to lane, often without eating the whole day, despite being aware that people mostly remain hostile towards us.”

Koja said his treatment had cost him more than he earned.

“I long to go back to Kashmir,” he said. “Once I get there, I prefer to beg rather than risk my life here.”

Koja said that around 500 Kashmiris in his area in Malsian village lived in fear. Many refused to go out alone and returned to their rooms by midnight. Several had left for Kashmir. 

Among the 15 Kashmiris in Koja’s building in Malsian village, four, including an elderly man, had been attacked by a “local gang” that targets Kashmiris. (We cannot independently verify this information.)

“We are not able to earn,” said Koja. “It seems everything in life is falling apart.”

‘Entire Kashmiri Trading Community Terrified’

While selling shawls in Punjab's Kapurthala district on 10 February 2025, 32-year-old Fareed Ahmad was suddenly stabbed in the arm by some unknown persons.

For some time, Ahmad couldn’t understand what was happening. 

 “I was punched, kicked, slapped, and dragged," Ahmad said over a phone call from Kapurthala. 

As Ahmad regained consciousness, he found his clothes torn, bruises all over his body, and everything was stolen, including shawls, cash and mobile phone, he said. 

"I don’t know if it’s luck or something else,” he said. “They tried to kill me, but I don’t understand how I survived.”

Since the attack, Ahmad has been confined to his room in Punjab, unable to work. 

"I haven’t earned a single paisa in the past month,” he said. “The shawls I had were taken on credit from a wholesaler. Now I can’t even pay back my debts.” 

Most Kashmiri sellers, including Ahmad, said that they wanted to return to Kashmir but could not until they could pay back the wholesalers and creditors. 

Ahmad said a fellow shawl salesman had stopped speaking to anyone and no longer went out after he was beaten. 

“The entire Kashmiri traders community is terrified,” Ahmad said.

"We go out in groups now because we are being targeted—only Kashmiris," he said. “It’s clear they hate us. There’s a strange kind of hatred towards Kashmiris.”

‘It Was Traumatic’

On 23 November 2024, 21-year-old Firdaus Ahmad and his father, Ali Muhammad, 60, were heckled by Sushma Devi, a block development committee (BDC) member in Himachal Pradesh’s Kangra area.

Sushma Devi, who claimed to be the wife of a sarpanch, told them not to come to her neighbourhood and to force them to chant Jai Shree Ram or go back to Kashmir.

In a video that went viral, Sushma Devi says, “We are Hindus, and we have our Hindu community selling the same things. We should buy from them. Why would someone, especially Muslims, come from somewhere else and do business here? This is our India. You go to your Kashmir. We don’t need you here. I will request everyone not to purchase anything from you. Just leave from here.”

Sushma submitted an apology after the video stirred outrage, and the police registered an FIR against her under section 299 (deliberate and malicious acts that insult or attempt to insult the religious beliefs or religion) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023.

“We have been working here for almost three decades, but that day, we got scared,” said Firdaus Ahmad.

“We don’t understand the purpose of why she even recorded the video of the incident and uploaded the same on social media,” he said. “We never wanted this to be highlighted as our families back at home would get worried.” 

Firdaus Ahmad, a resident of Kupwara district, said they were not following the case to avoid further trouble. They said they cared more about their livelihood and wanted to mind their own business. 

“What shall we say? We cannot say anything,” said Firdaus Ahmad. “It was traumatic, but now everything is fine, and we are working here.”

In another incident, on 7 December 2024, Younus Khan, a resident of Srinagar, who was selling traditional handicrafts at the International Gita Festival in Haryana’s Kurukshetra, was attacked by men holding saffron flags.

They called him a Bangladeshi and called for a boycott of Muslim vendors at the fair, a video showed. 

After Younus filed a complaint, the police registered an FIR that included charges of rioting and criminal intimidation. 

In Koja’s case, an FIR was registered for theft after preparation made for causing death, hurt or restraint to commit theft, robbery, wrongful confinement and criminal intimidation. In Fareed Ahmad’s case, an FIR was registered for “snatching”.

Koja and Ahmad did not seem satisfied with the probe.

“No one listens to us, not even the police,” Koja said. “They only act when things go viral on social media.”

Ahmad also mentioned how the police refused to search a location (in a village) after his stolen phone was traced there. 

“They said they won’t search the village, as they cannot frisk people and locals there and that it won’t look good,” Ahmad said.

‘Mainstream Media Have Spread So Much Hate’ 

Tufail Ahmad, a Kashmiri shawl seller from Kupwara district, who took Fareed Ahmad to the hospital after the attack on 10 February, recalled that Ahmad lost his voice due to the shock. 

“Ahmad was beaten with bricks. When he gained consciousness, he couldn't speak for some time,” he said.

Tufail Ahmad, terrified since he saw Fareed Ahmad in that condition, said, “Most of the Kashmiris here have decided not to return. They are harassing us unnecessarily. They hate us, even comparing us to street dogs, using slurs and insults.”

Tufail Ahmad blamed the media for fueling the hatred. 

“The mainstream media has spread so much hate and false propaganda about Kashmir and Kashmiris,” he said. “Although we remain cautious, we are still targeted.”

The portrayal of Kashmiris in mainstream media has often been criticised for its negative portrayal with a hyper-nationalist lens. 

Kashmiris, who express dissent, especially against the government, have often been framed as instigators of violence, misrepresented and painted as “anti-nationals”, terror sympathisers, traitors or  Islamic radicals by the mainstream media (here, here, here, here, here).

Critics and academics have written about how Indian cinema, mainly Bollywood, has been capitalising on jingoism and nationalism, demonising Kashmir Muslims by peddling propaganda and linking terrorism with Islam. 

“The entire system is in cahoots,” said Mufti. “When I say system, I’m not just referring to the government or the administration, but also the media. For the media to survive and generate revenue, they have to align themselves with those in power.”

(Arjumand Shaheen is a Srinagar-based independent journalist. She has been reporting from the region for over six years, focusing on politics, human rights, gender, health and the environment.)

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