Rehan Qayoom Mir
Srinagar, Aug 05: For 22 years, Samena of Anantnag district carried a wound time could never heal, as the loss of her family members, who fell victim to a terrorist attack in the early 1990s.
She said decades passed in silence, with no justice, no support and no recognition. But on August 5, 2025, her tears carried a different meaning — tears of justice, gratitude, and hope.
“For the first time in 29 years, someone in power looked at us with compassion. Today, we felt heard. LG Manoj Sinha gave us justice, not sympathy,” Samena said while speaking to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), with moist eyes.
As she sat among dozens of families of terror victims during an official event in Srinagar, LG Sinha assured that justice will prevail. For Samena, those words felt like a long-awaited answer to years of unanswered prayers.
“Nobody ever came to ask how we survived all these years. But today, LG sahab stood before us and promised that justice would no longer be delayed. When he said appointments will be fulfilled, we cried. We truly cried,” she said.
Over the years, Samena says her family struggled — financially, emotionally and mentally. “We were not just grieving; we were abandoned,” she recalled. But this year’s event, which marked six years since the abrogation of Article 370, brought something her family had never experienced before: dignity and closure.
“People used to ask us why we still talk about something that happened so long ago. But pain doesn’t expire. For the first time, our pain was acknowledged. LG Sinha made us feel like we matter,” she said.
She added, “LG Manoj Sinha has given us more than a job, he has restored our dignity, our faith and our place in this land.”
Notably, LG Sinha shared that wounds which have persisted for decades are now being healed. He said today’s landmark event provided a sense of closure to the families who have silently suffered trauma for years—(KNO)
