Kashmir, Kargil See Fourth Day of Protests After Khamenei Assassination
Srinagar: Sporadic protests and rallies continued for the fourth consecutive day in parts of Kashmir and Ladakh on Wednesday (March 4) against the assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Witnesses said that thousands of people including women and children attended peaceful protests, rallies and mourning ceremonies in parts of Magam, Budgam, Baramulla, Bemina, Zadibal, Kargil and other Shia-majority areas of Kashmir and Ladakh.
Authorities have stepped up the deployment of security forces in these areas while mobile internet services continue to remain restricted across Kashmir for the third consecutive day, causing inconvenience to students and businesses.
In an order on March 2 which was released to the media on Tuesday, J&K’s home department said that mobile internet services have been restricted to 2G in Kashmir amid “apprehensions” that high speed mobile internet “could disturb public order and security in light of the death of” Khamenei.
Security forces used tear-gas and charged with batons to disperse protesters in parts of Srinagar on Tuesday. Photo: The Wire
The order issued by principal secretary (home) Chandraker Bharti said that restrictions will be imposed from 9 pm on March 1 till 8 pm on Wednesday.
In the summer capital Srinagar, restrictions were eased around the city centre Lal Chowk which was sealed by the authorities on Sunday evening following a massive protest during which the Shia mourners draped the historic clock tower with life-size posters of Khamenei and the national flags of Iran and Palestine.
There was thin movement of vehicular traffic in Lal Chowk, even though a majority of the shops and other business establishments continued to remain closed for the fourth consecutive day.
Security has been stepped up across Kashmir while restrictions were imposed in Srinagar following the assassination of Iranian Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Photo: The Wire
Dozens of police and paramilitary personnel continued to patrol the city centre where spools of concertina wire and metal barricades blocked some roads amid apprehensions of law and order problems.
J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah met religious leaders and civil society members in Srinagar against the backdrop of the simmering situation in Kashmir following the assassination of Khamenei.
“Chief Minister today interacted with religious leaders and members of civil society in Srinagar in light of recent developments in West Asia. The participants expressed concern over the situation and conveyed their condolences over the loss of lives in Iran,” Abdullah’s office said in a post on X.
Abdullah told reporters that he stressed on upholding peace and brotherhood in Kashmir during the meeting with the religious leaders while appealing people to grieve peacefully.
A spool of concertina wire blocking the footbridge over Jhelum river which connects Raj Bagh with Lal Chowk localities of Srinagar. Photo: The Wire
A special prayer (fatiha) was held for Khamenei and others who lost their lives in the joint US-Israel strikes.
Former J&K chief minister and Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti staged a protest at the party headquarters in Srinagar against the “martyrdom” of Khamenei and the ongoing attacks on Iran.
Mufti also burnt the posters of the US president Donald Trump and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“When India was facing western sanctions, Iran came to our rescue. It is tragic that the country’s leadership has failed to condemn what Iran is going through. But the people of J&K and particularly Muslims stand with the brave people of Iran,” she said.
The PDP chief urged the government to withdraw the FIRs filed against the Lok Sabha MP from Srinagar Syed Aga Ruhullah and former Srinagar Mattu Junaid Mattu, and release the protesters who have been allegedly detained for participating in the ongoing protests in Kashmir.
Just because GOI & NC government in Jammu & Kashmir have chosen to remain silent on the blatant aggression by US and Israel against Iran and the martyrdom of its Supreme Leader doesn’t mean that those who speak out are offenders to be booked under the law.
The FIR against Aga…
— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) March 4, 2026
Kashmir’s chief cleric and former Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq also urged the authorities to release the detained protesters and respect the right of people to peaceful protest.
From the Valley of Kashmir to Pir Panjal and Jammu, the unity in grief and condemnation over the events in Iran shown by the Muslims of Jammu and Kashmir, as one Ummah, is commendable. It reflects the living moral conscience of our society, standing firmly against oppression and…
— Mirwaiz Umar Farooq (@MirwaizKashmir) March 4, 2026
Peaceful protests and mourning continued in Kargil district of Ladakh for the fourth consecutive day against Khamenei’s assassination. Thousands of people attended the ritualised mourning practice of azadari at the Hussaini Park in Kargil on Wednesday.
Witnesses said that the mourners, some of whom had travelled from remote villages of the arid desert region, carried the placards of Khamenei while denouncing Israel and US for his assassination.
Meanwhile, reports said that restrictions will continue to remain in place across Kashmir on Thursday “to maintain law and order”.
This article went live on March fourth, two thousand twenty six, at forty-nine minutes past six in the evening.The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.
