Memander, a village in the volatile district of Shopian in south Kashmir, has witnessed blood and gore for decades. Its folklore is dotted with tales of horrifying violence and resilience. Surrounded by clusters of hamlets, its dense apple orchards have become home to the new age militants who, according to security agencies, have found a safe refuge in its thick vegetation and, most importantly, with the active support of the residents.
In the last two days, these hamlets witnessed blood being spilled on streets after a long pause with three funerals being held one after another. The victims include a 60-year-old man, who died because of a rumor, a youngster who got killed by security forces during clashes near an encounter site and a seven-year-old who died because he was playing with a grenade left behind at the site.
The village witnessed poignant scenes portraying a deep loss and unending despair. In these bad times, the only thing that binds them together is the pain of living in the never-ending conflict in the Valley.
On Wednesday, a group of children were playing in the courtyard of a house, when a grenade went off, killing a seven-year-old boy, while three other children were critically injured in the explosion. It is not clear how seven-year-old Saliq Iqbal Kursheed and four other children in the age group of six to nine, found a grenade in the courtyard of their house. The children, unaware of the consequences of their puerile acts, threw stones at it out of curiosity when it exploded, a neighbor said.
