Missing Kokernag labourer found dead in Punjab, family alleges murder

Anantnag, Oct 19: Grief and anger gripped Darpora village of Hallpora in South Kashmir’s Kokernag area on Monday after the body of a 28-year-old labourer, Aijaz Ahmad Dar, son of Abdul Majeed Dar, who had been missing for weeks, was brought home from Punjab.
According to the details, soon after the body arrived family members of Dar and locals staged a protest and demanded a thorough investigation into his death.
The family members, accompanied by locals raised slogans seeking justice for the deceased. Overwhelmed with grief, the relatives were seen wailing and beating their chests as they demanded that the circumstances surrounding his death be investigated and those responsible be brought to justice.
The deceased had left his native village in search of work, hoping to earn a livelihood for his family.
As per his relatives, he had initially travelled to Srinagar before moving to Ludhiana in Punjab for employment.
A family member said that Dar remained in contact with his family for about a week after leaving for work, but his phone subsequently became unreachable, leaving them worried about his whereabouts.
“We were in regular contact with him for nearly a week. After that, his phone was switched off, and we could not establish contact with him despite our efforts. We became increasingly worried as we had no information about where he was or what had happened to him,” the family member said.
The relatives said they had been hoping for his safe return and had made efforts to ascertain his whereabouts after losing contact with him. However, the news of his death left the family devastated, raising several questions about the circumstances in which he died.
“He had left home to earn a living, but we never imagined that he would never return alive. We want to know what happened to him and how he died. Our family deserves answers, and the truth must come out,” another relative said.
The family members alleged that Dar had been murdered and urged the police to investigate the case thoroughly rather than leave any aspect unexplored.
“We are demanding a proper and impartial investigation into his death. If he was killed, those responsible must be identified and arrested without delay. We do not want the case to be closed without establishing the truth. We want justice for Aijaz and demand that the police examine every possible angle,” a family member said.
They also appealed to the higher authorities to intervene and ensure that the investigation was conducted in a transparent manner, expressing apprehension over the circumstances that led to the young labourer’s death.
Family members and locals had staged a protest in Hallpora on October 17, seeking urgent intervention and efforts to trace Dar after he went missing.
On Monday, after the body arrived, the protesters gathered outside Police Station Kokernag and reiterated their demand for justice, calling for the identification and arrest of those responsible for his death.
A police officer said that a missing report regarding Aijaz Ahmad Dar, son of Abdul Majeed Dar, a resident of Darpora, Hallpora, Gadool in Kokernag, had been lodged on September 26, 2026.
The officer said police have assured the protesting family members and locals that the matter would be investigated fairly and that all necessary steps would be taken to establish the facts. (KNO)