PDP leaders plow rice fields to protest against the government. taking over land from farmers in Pulwama

PDP leader Iltija Mufti, who also joined the farmers, accused the revenue department of “trying to wrest 2,000 Kanals of fertile agricultural land in Dangerpora, Pulwama from poor families who have been cultivating paddy here for centuries”. Photo credit: X/@jkpdp

In a unique protest, leaders of the Opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Monday (June 8, 2026) plowed paddy fields to oppose the administration’s move to take over a huge tract of land from farmers in south Kashmir’s Pulwama.

“A few days ago, the local tehsildar warned members of 400 villages not to sow rice seedlings in fields spread over 3,000 kanals (375 acres) of land. Villagers have been warned of a First Information Report (FIR) if they enter the fields. We have been sowing the land for more than 80 years,” said Shabir, what will happen to our families and livestock. Pulwama’s Padgampora.

He said that the local people use small areas of 3-4 kanals to get rice and fodder for cattle. “If the government takes the land, it will have a serious impact on local residents,” Mr Ahmad said.

To side with the farmers, local legislator Waheed ur Rehmaan Parra plowed paddy fields for cultivation. “It’s a symbolic act of resistance against the campaign to grab land and evict local farmers,” Mr Parra said. The PDP leader planted rice saplings in paddy fields in Padgampora where the tehsildar warned of police action.

PDP leader Iltija Mufti, who also joined the farmers, accused the revenue department of “trying to wrest 2,000 Kanals of fertile agricultural land in Dangerpora, Pulwama from poor families who have been cultivating paddy here for centuries”.

“Like the Sidhra demolition in Jammu, the J&K government is using the police to carry out these illegal diktats by threatening to slap the Public Safety Act against the protesters. The land of Kashmir belongs to its people,” Ms Mufti said.

Ms Mufti asked the J&K Police “not to interfere in political matters”. “The PSA is a strong anti-terror law and should not be imposed on people who are fighting for their real rights like land,” Ms Mufti said.

Following the PDP protests, former District Development Council Vice Chairman and senior NC leader Mukhtar Ahmad Bandh also plowed paddy land in Dangerpora, Padgampora, Pulwama as a sign of protest.

Published – 09 Jun 2026 02:39 IST