Top Kashmir leader survives assassination attempt
An attacker tried to shoot the former chief minister of the Indian union territory from point-blank range
A top political leader survived an assassination attempt in Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday, the Indian union territory’s chief minister, Omar Abdullah, said on Wednesday.
National Conference President Farooq Abdullah, 88, a former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, was attending a marriage ceremony in Jammu when the incident occurred. The attacker was immediately taken into custody.
Farooq Abdullah is Omar Abdullah’s father.
“My father had a very close shave,” Abdullah said on X. “The details are sketchy at the moment but what is known is that a man with a loaded pistol was able to get within point-blank range & discharge a shot. It was only the close protection team that deflected the shot & ensured that the assassination attempt failed.”
Allah is kind. My father had a very close shave. The details are sketchy at the moment but what is known is that a man with a loaded pistol was able to get within point blank range & discharge a shot. It was only the close protection team that deflected the shot & ensured that… https://t.co/hYBe64Eigl
— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) March 11, 2026
The attacker, identified as a 65-year-old man, who was trailing the politician, fired a gunshot, but commandos managed to overpower him, and the shot missed Abdullah narrowly, video footage shows.
The attacker has reportedly said that he had been waiting for this moment for the last 20 years. The motive has not been ascertained yet.
The former chief minister was accompanied by the state’s deputy chief minister, Surinder Choudhary, and a top aide to Omar Abdullah when the assassination attempt took place.