Editorial | Justice Reaches Forgotten Families

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha’s gesture in visiting Kupwara is a milestone in Jammu and Kashmir’s protracted struggle against terrorism and injustice. Meeting with the families of the victims in Dardipora, the “village of widows,” was a gesture of empathy, accountability, and new hope.

For decades, the residents of Kupwara suffered and suffered. Families had lost their loved ones to terrorism, many had lost their homes, and some had been driven into poverty. The trip was more than symbolic. It was a definitive statement that those families, once forgotten, now find themselves at the heart of government policy.

Manoj Sinha interacted with 113 families of victims of terror at Government Degree College Kupwara. He heard their tales with compassion and assured them of total government support. His words were easy but effective: “No innocent will be touched, no guilty will be spared.” These are strong words for justice, without discrimination or compromise.

He announced that every genuine victim’s family will receive a government job. This step alone has the power to change lives. Many families have waited years for such recognition. The assurance that those left out will receive appointment letters after elections adds further credibility to the administration’s intent.

The reopening of previously unregistered cases is another important move. All those families who were deprived of justice because their cases were overlooked or mismanaged in the past will now get justice. Opening these files is an acknowledgment of past wrongs and taking responsibility to rectify them. This is governance at work.

Manoj Sinha also directed that the properties of terror victims, which have been seized, be returned. In all these years, lots of innocent families lost land or homes for one reason or another. To return these properties is to restore dignity. It returns more than ownership. It returns identity.

Self-employment assistance and financial aid to the victimized families indicate that the government is thinking ahead of mere relief. It is keen on long-term rehabilitation and self-sufficiency. Joining hands with a social group to construct houses for victims who have lost theirs gives this initiative a touch of humanity. The aim is not merely to offer shelter but assist these families in rebuilding their lives with confidence.

The government has already offered victims’ families approximately 250 government posts. Although the figure looks insignificant at the national level, for the families, it is the first concrete evidence that the system can deliver.

Equally significant were Sinha’s firm words against the glorification of terrorism. He denounced the people who used to sympathize with Pakistan and terrorists, and made it absolutely clear that such things will no longer be allowed. He blamed the past regimes for siphoning off welfare funds into the coffers of a few select individuals, leaving the true victims to silently suffer.

This shift in policy is important. Politics in Jammu and Kashmir had for too long been defined by double standards. Terrorism was justified or turned a blind eye to for immediate political benefits. The outcome was decades of dread and lost trust. Sinha’s visit has shattered that norm. It has established a line of demarcation between victims and aggressors, between sufferers and inflictors of suffering.

His assertion that “justice has finally reached terror victims after decades of neglect” is not hyperbole. It reflects a change in government and in popular opinion. The government is not anymore responding to terror, it is proactively undermining the environment that nurtures it. In the process, it is safeguarding the victims as well as the coming generations.

The assurance of quick justice for Kupwara families is great. They are families who lost fathers, brothers, and sons. Their suffering was inaudible for all these years. By recognising their agony, the administration is again giving them a feeling of belonging. It’s telling them that their loss is important, and that the state is with them.

Describing the agony of these families as “deeply painful,” Sinha vowed that justice will not be deferred. His emphasis on accountability and transparency is an indication that this effort is not political but humane.

The bigger message coming out of Kupwara is that peace and justice have to travel together. Peace is fragile without justice. Governance is hollow without compassion. This visit delivered both. It provided emotional comfort and pragmatic steps.

The pledge to deconstruct the terror apparatus is ambitious but imperative. It involves severing the networks that manipulate young brains, finance that fuels violence, and ideologies that legitimize hatred. Jammu and Kashmir requires such a firm direction.

A new dawn of justice and hope has truly arrived. Kupwara’s families, who were known previously for nothing but their sorrow, are today exemplars of courage and re-emergence. The administration’s actions confirm that true healing starts when justice is served with honesty.

Manoj Sinha’s visit to Kupwara has done more than heal old wounds. It has established a platform for durable trust between the people and the government. It is a reminder to every citizen that the war against terror is not just about security. It is about dignity being returned to those who lost everything.

This visit will be remembered as the day justice arrived at the forgotten families of Kupwara. It converted promises into reality, and grief into resilience.