A Tale of Disappearance and Loss in IIOJK

A Tale of Disappearance and Loss in IIOJK


Every mother waits for her son to return; in Kashmir, some wait forever. In the troubled valleys of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), disappearances are not rare news  they are a cruel, recurring reality. For decades, families have watched their loved ones vanish, often after being taken away by security forces, never to be seen alive again. Some return broken after months in detention, others come back as bodies, and many are never found at all. Each case leaves behind a hollow home and unanswered questions, deepening the pain and fear that hang over the region.


One such story is that of Riyaz Ahmad Bajad, a 26-year-old from Qazigund in Kulgam. Riyaz was known in his village as a helpful, soft-spoken young man who dreamed of opening a small shop one day. Friends say he was always ready to lend a hand, whether it was carrying groceries for a neighbor or listening to the elders talk about “the old Kashmir.” But in February this year, Riyaz’s life took a turn no one in his family could have imagined. On the 13th of that


month, he and two other young men — Shokit Ahmad Bajard and Mukthar Awan — disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Locals claimed that the trio was picked up by the Indian army in the Qazigund area. That was the last anyone saw of them together. Days turned into weeks. Their families searched everywhere — police stations, army camps, hospitals — clinging to any scrap of hope. Riyaz’s mother kept his room untouched, the clothes neatly folded, the prayer mat ready.


She still expected him to walk through the door with his quiet smile. Then came the call that shattered the hope. Villagers had spotted a body in the icy waters of Veshow Nallah in the Mah area of Kulgam. The current had carried it into the rocks. When they pulled it out, the truth hit hard — it was Riyaz. The village froze in grief. Men rushed to his home, women wailed in the streets.


His mother collapsed beside him, clutching his lifeless hand. “I told him not to go that day,” she cried over and over.The sorrow quickly turned into anger. Locals staged protests, holding Riyaz’s photograph high in the air. “Where are the others?” they shouted, demanding the safe return of Shokit and Mukthar. The two young men remain missing, and no clear answers have been given about what happened.


For the people of Kulgam, Riyaz’s death is more than just one family’s tragedy — it is another chapter in the long history of loss in Kashmir. Every disappearance is like a stone thrown into still water; the ripples of grief and fear spread far and wide. The songs Riyaz once hummed are now painful reminders of dreams that will never be fulfilled. Riyaz did return to his family, but only to be buried in the land he loved.


His mother still looks toward the doorway every evening, not because she truly believes he will walk in, but because old habits die hard. For now, his family, hisfriends, and his community wait — for justice, for the truth, and for the return of those still missing.




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