A woman stands atop the rubble of Ahsan ul Haq Amir’s demolished house in Pulwama, holding a young boy in her arms as she points toward her own severely damaged home nearby.
Luqmaan Zeerak & Syed Affan
In the wake of the April 22 attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 tourists, Kashmir has entered a harsher phase of crackdowns. The government’s “zero tolerance” policy has taken a visible form: demolition of homes allegedly linked to banned outfits like Hizbul Mujahideen, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, and The Resistance Front.
At least ten houses have been razed so far—belonging to men like Adil Hussain Thoker, Zakir Ahmad Ganai, Amir Ahmad Dar, and others. The homes of three suspects in the Pahalgam attack were also flattened. Police say this is part of dismantling the “terror ecosystem.”
But the impact runs deeper. In places like Pulwama, adjacent homes—unconnected to the accused—have suffered structural damage. Families now live under cracked ceilings and unstable roofs. What was meant to be targeted has spread wider harm.
For civilians already caught between survival and suspicion, this new wave of punitive action deepens fear and displacement. Even after the bulldozers leave, the dust lingers—settling over silence, loss, and quiet resilience.
Luqmaan Zeerak’s series for The Observer Post documents not just the demolitions, but the everyday lives fractured by a war both visible and veiled—where every stone, every silence, holds history and urgency.
The remains of Adil Hussain Thoker’s house in Guri, Bijbehara, after it was demolished by authorities. Photo: Luqmaan Zeerak/The Observer Post
Amidst the rubble of a home reduced to dust, the Indian flag lies fallen. Photo: Luqmaan Zeerak/The Observer Post
With a fixed gaze, Asif Sheikh’s mother stares at the remains of her destroyed home. Photo: Luqmaan Zeerak/The Observer Post
Discarded remnants of everyday life an abandoned cup box, a basket, and a broken window pane lie in the wake of destruction. Photo: Luqmaan Zeerak/The Observer Post
Adil Hussain Thoker’s mother sits hopelessly at a neighbours house, displaced and in shock after her home was demolished. Photo: Luqmaan Zeerak/The Observer Post
A view of Ahsan ul Haq Amir’s house, completely reduced to rubble, with surrounding structures also showing signs of heavy damage, reflecting the scale of destruction in the area. Photo: Luqmaan Zeerak/The Observer Post
Fragments of shattered glass from Asif Sheikh’s home, gathered on the ground after a demolition operation. Photo: Luqmaan Zeerak/The Observer Post
A woman stands atop the rubble of Ahsan ul Haq Amir’s demolished house in Pulwama, holding a young boy in her arms as she points toward her own severely damaged home nearby. Photo: Luqmaan Zeerak/The Observer Post
A fractured view through a broken window shows the demolished remains of Ahsan ul Haq Amir’s house and the surrounding neighborhood in Pulwama. Photo: Luqmaan Zeerak/The Observer Post
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