On 8 July 2016 security forces killed Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in an encounter at Kokernag in south Kashmir. Protests, stone-pelting and clashes with police and paramilitary forces followed across the Valley, under a curfew that lasted 51 days and a separatist shutdown that lasted 133. Official counts of civilians killed range from 51 to 96, separatists claimed 158, two policemen died, and more than 6,000 people were hit by pellets, hundreds of them in the eyes.
Key takeaways
- Burhan Wani's killing on 8 July 2016 set off protests across the Kashmir Valley, a 51-day curfew and a 133-day separatist shutdown that ended on 19 November.
- Official civilian death counts range from 51 to 96; separatists claimed 158. Two policemen died. The state counted 6,221 pellet injuries and 782 eye injuries by February 2017.
- The Centre and the PDP-BJP state government blamed Pakistan and "vested interests"; separatists blamed the force used and demanded self-determination.
- Courts refused to ban pellet guns. The Supreme Court said in December 2016 they should not be used "indiscriminately".
Background and how it started
Burhan Wani, 22, from Tral in Pulwama district, joined the militancy at 15 and became a divisional commander of the Hizbul Mujahideen, widely seen as the face of a new, social-media-savvy generation of militants Caravan. Home Minister Rajnath Singh told the Rajya Sabha he was "a terrorist" with 17 FIRs against him IANS via Business Standard. The state was ruled by a PDP-BJP coalition under Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti. Pellet-firing shotguns had been used for crowd control in Kashmir since 2010, when some 120 people were killed in firing on street protests IANS via The News Minute.
On 8 July 2016 Wani was killed in a gunfight with security forces at Kokernag, Anantnag district, one of three militants killed in the encounter Caravan Deccan Herald. At his funeral in Tral on 9 July, Caravan reported crowds "in tens of thousands"; a Kashmir Life editor estimated them "in lakhs" and said armed militants appeared and fired shots in salute Kashmir Life. Police confirmed 16 people killed in clashes that day Caravan.
Claim · Mehbooba Mufti On 28 July she said forces had been told only that "three militants were hiding", and "had they known he was there, he (Wani) would have been given one chance". PDP MP Muzaffar Beigh had said Wani was not given a chance to surrender IANS via The News Minute.
Timeline
Wani killed
Mobile internet is cut the same day CPJ.
Funeral, clashes, curfew
Curfew begins PTI.
Newspapers stopped
Police raid presses in Srinagar CPJ.
Rajya Sabha debate
Rajnath Singh blames Pakistan IANS.
The "toffee" press conference
Mehbooba Mufti walks out Deccan Herald.
Curfew lifted after 51 days
It stays in Pulwama town and parts of old Srinagar PTI.
All-party delegation
Separatists refuse talks IANS.
High Court refuses pellet ban
Reports date the order 21 or 22 September Kashmir Life PTI.
Kashmir Reader banned
Order by the Srinagar District Magistrate The Quint.
Valley reopens
First full working day in 133 days PTI.
Supreme Court on pellets
No "indiscriminate" use PTI.
Curfew, shutdown and the blackout
By 15 July curfew covered 10 districts, including, residents said for the first time, Pahalgam Scroll. Protests were heaviest in Anantnag, Kulgam, Pulwama and Shopian, where more than 60 of the dead were from, per PTI PTI via Deccan Herald. When curfew was lifted on 29 August, stone-pelting was reported in six towns; police said "the overall situation remained peaceful" PTI via Deccan Herald. The separatists' strike kept shops, transport and schools shut.
On 16 July police raided Srinagar newspaper offices and presses, seized copies and briefly detained staff; papers including Greater Kashmir, Rising Kashmir and Kashmir Reader were affected, and cable TV was blocked CPJ. Government's position Education Minister Naeem Akhtar said the measures aimed at saving lives and strengthening peace efforts CPJ. The Editors Guild of India called it "a direct assault" on press freedom Newslaundry.
On 2 October the Srinagar District Magistrate banned Kashmir Reader for "publishing content that can incite acts of violence". It returned on 28 December The Quint Newslaundry. Postpaid mobile internet was restored on 18 November; prepaid stayed cut PTI via DT Next.
School buildings were set on fire, mostly at night. By 31 October, 26 had burned, 12 completely, per the education department Al Jazeera. Claim · Deputy CM Nirmal Singh said separatists were "encouraging ... elements to burn schools". Claim · Mirwaiz Mirwaiz Umar Farooq called the fires part of a "diversionary plan" Al Jazeera. No evidence No one claimed responsibility and no finding on the culprits appears in the sources reviewed HRW.
The death and injury count
Civilians killed, by source
- Deaths: The Chief Minister told the Assembly in January 2017 that 76 people besides 2 policemen had died PTI via Business Standard. A 2018 reply gave 51 killed from 8 July 2016 to 27 February 2017 Kashmir Reader. The Quint cited official figures of 96 civilians and a separatist claim of 158 killed and 15,000 injured The Quint.
- Injured civilians: 9,042 to February 2017: 6,221 by pellets, 368 by bullets, 4 by PAVA shells, 2,449 otherwise; 782 eye injuries Kashmir Reader.
- Security forces: The state's Advocate General told the Supreme Court 3,777 policemen were injured and two died between 8 July and 11 August Tribune. The Attorney General cited attacks on CRPF camps in that period, reported as 252 by IANS (1,775 personnel injured) and 1,522 by the Tribune IANS. PTI put security personnel injured at about 5,000 by November PTI via DT Next.
The pellet gun debate
By late July, 210 patients had been admitted to Srinagar's SMHS Hospital with pellet injuries to the eyes. Dr Sundaram Natarajan, who led visiting Mumbai surgeons, said he had never seen eye injuries in such numbers: "It is like shooting a tomato" PTI via Scroll. The Quint reported "nearly 200 civilians" lost all or part of their sight The Quint.
The Home Ministry set up a seven-member expert panel on 26 July, and on 25 August Rajnath Singh promised "an alternative to pellet guns" within days. The panel favoured chilli-based PAVA shells Tribune. On 29 August an official told PTI there would be no blanket ban: pellets would be used in the "rarest of rare cases" PTI via Business Standard.
The J&K High Court Bar Association sought a ban and prosecution of those who fired. In September 2016 the High Court refused, saying "so long as there is violence by unruly mobs, use of force is inevitable" and that no fact-finding authority had recorded excessive force; it ordered proper treatment for the injured Kashmir Life. On appeal, a Supreme Court bench under Chief Justice T S Thakur said on 14 December that pellets should not be used "indiscriminately" and only after "proper application of mind" PTI via Business Standard.
In March 2017 the court asked the Centre to consider alternatives. Petitioners said 300 people had been partly or totally blinded. Government's position Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi called them "anti-national protests" and said pellets were used only after warnings and lathi charges Tribune IANS. The High Court dismissed the petition in March 2020, holding that ex gratia paid to "most of the injured persons" met the state's obligation Kashmir Life.
Both accounts
Separatists' account
Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and JKLF chief Yasin Malik ran joint weekly "protest calendars" of shutdowns, marches and "Black Days" Kashmir Life. They framed the protests as against civilian killings and for the "right to self-determination", calling a "referendum march" for 13 and 14 August and telling parents not to send children to Independence Day events PTI via Business Standard. They put the toll at 158 The Quint.
Centre's and state government's account
Government's position Rajnath Singh said Pakistan was responsible: "Kehne ko naam Pakistan hai lakin harkatain napaak" (its name means pure, its actions are unholy). He said forces had been told to use "maximum restraint" IANS. Arun Jaitley called Pakistan the "sole reason" Gulf Times. Narendra Modi blamed a "handful of people who have been misled" and offered dialogue within "insaniyat, jamhuriyat and Kashmiriyat" The Quint. Mehbooba Mufti blamed elements fomenting trouble for "vested interests" Kashmir Life.
At a joint press conference with Rajnath Singh on 25 August, asked about force used on protesters, Mehbooba Mufti said those hit by bullets or pellets had not gone out to fetch milk or toffees "but attack police stations and security camps", and that "5% of people" were creating trouble. She then ended the press conference Deccan Herald. Two days later she said: "I want to tell Pakistan, if it has any sympathy for Kashmiris, it shouldn't provoke them to attack police stations" Madhyamam. In January 2019 she apologised for the remark, calling it "a mother's reaction" Kashmir Life.
Claim · Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif called Wani a "martyr of the independence movement" and promised "moral, political and diplomatic support" PTI via Scroll. Pakistan observed a "Black Day" on 20 July, and India's External Affairs Ministry told it to stop "interfering in India's internal affairs" Gulf News. The sources reviewed do not set out specific evidence of Pakistan's role in the street protests.
The all-party delegation
On 4 September 2016 a delegation of 28 MPs from 20 parties, led by Rajnath Singh, visited Srinagar Kashmir Life. Geelani refused to open his door to Sharad Yadav, Sitaram Yechury and D Raja. Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Shabir Shah and Yasin Malik met opposition members but declined dialogue "under the prevailing situation" IANS via Madhyamam. Singh said the separatists did not believe in "Kashmiriyat", "Insaniyat" or "Jumhooriyat" Kashmir Life.
Arrests and PSA detentions
Geelani and the Mirwaiz were held in preventive custody on 11 August when they tried to defy house arrest PTI via Business Standard. In January 2017 the Chief Minister said 2,690 stone-pelting cases had been registered and 463 people detained under the Public Safety Act, which allows detention without trial; 318 were still held on 29 December PTI via Business Standard. Later figures differ: 552 PSA detentions in 2016, all released, per a 2018 Assembly reply Kashmir Life; 11,449 arrests and 439 PSA cases, per police data Scroll.
In January 2017 the Chief Minister announced special investigation teams on alleged excessive force, Rs 5 lakh for families of those killed in firing, and jobs for people blinded by pellets Scroll.
How it wound down
By November people were increasingly defying the strike and board exams had begun. On 19 November the separatists announced a relaxation, and shops, offices, transport and schools opened for a full day for the first time in 133 days PTI via Deccan Herald Kashmir Life. In September a senior police officer had told Kashmir Life, "I see the only thing that can help is the fatigue" Kashmir Life. Officials quoted by The Quint in 2017 credited NIA raids, "Operation All-Out" against militants and parents' concern for the later fall in street violence The Quint.
Outcome
- Deaths: 51 to 96 civilians in official counts, 158 per separatists; 2 policemen.
- Injuries: 9,042 civilians, 6,221 by pellets, 782 eye injuries; about 5,000 security personnel.
- Curfew and shutdown: 51 days of curfew; 133 days of shutdown.
- Detentions: 463 under the PSA by 29 December 2016.
- Pellets: Not banned; reserved for "rarest of rare" cases, per officials.
Where things stand in 2026
In July 2026 Mehbooba Mufti, at a Jantar Mantar protest in Delhi, said force in Kashmir "made some sense" because of militancy. Rivals said she was justifying the 2016 pellet use and revived her "milk and toffee" remark; she later apologised Kashmir Life Kashmir Life. On 30 July 2026 the Omar Abdullah government approved Rs 41.16 lakh for a Shopian woman blinded by pellets at 13 in 2016 ETV Bharat. The head of the Pellet Victims Welfare Trust said it stopped advocacy by 2024 under "constant intimidation" Kashmir Life. No prosecutions over 2016 pellet injuries appear in the sources reviewed.
Questions people ask
How many people died in the 2016 Kashmir unrest?
Official counts range from 51 to 96 civilians, depending on period and source; separatists claimed 158. Two policemen died.
How many were blinded by pellets?
The state counted 782 eye injuries by February 2017. The Quint reported nearly 200 people lost sight partly or fully; petitioners said 300.
What was Mehbooba Mufti's toffee remark?
On 25 August 2016 she said those hit had not gone out for milk or toffees but to attack police stations and camps. She apologised in 2019.
How long was the 2016 curfew?
51 days, from 9 July to 29 August. The separatist shutdown lasted 133 days.
Did courts ban pellet guns?
No. The High Court refused in 2016 and dismissed the petition in 2020; the Supreme Court warned against indiscriminate use.
Sources
- Caravan: The funeral of Burhan Wani and the unrest that followed, July 2016
- Kashmir Life: Burhan burial, a newsletter from Tral, 9 July 2016
- Kashmir Life: In her video message, CM appeals for peace, 12 July 2016
- Scroll: Nawaz Sharif calls Burhan Wani a martyr, Pakistan to observe Black Day, 15 July 2016
- CPJ: Indian authorities shut down media outlets in Jammu and Kashmir, 18 July 2016
- Newslaundry: Editors Guild calls media gag in Kashmir "direct assault", 18 July 2016
- Kashmir Life: Shutdown to continue till Friday, 18 July 2016
- IANS via Business Standard: Rajnath slams Pakistan, asks it to mind its own business, 18 July 2016
- Gulf Times: Govt blames Pakistan for Kashmir violence, 19 July 2016
- Gulf News: Pakistan observes Black Day over Kashmir unrest, 20 July 2016
- IANS via The News Minute: Nobody knew Burhan was holed up, says Mehbooba Mufti, 28 July 2016
- Scroll: Mumbai doctors performed 46 eye surgeries in Kashmir in 3 days, 30 July 2016
- The Quint: Modi appeals for peace in J&K, blames "misled handful", 9 August 2016
- PTI via Business Standard: Geelani, Mirwaiz taken into preventive custody, 11 August 2016
- Deccan Herald: Fuming Mehbooba walks out of presser, 26 August 2016
- Tribune: In place of pellet guns, chilli-based PAVA shells likely, 26 August 2016
- IANS via The News Minute: Chilli pepper balls could replace pellets, says expert panel, 26 August 2016
- Madhyamam: Mehbooba meets Modi, blames Pakistan for Kashmir unrest, 27 August 2016
- PTI via Deccan Herald: After 51 days, curfew lifted in Kashmir Valley, 29 August 2016
- PTI via Business Standard: No blanket ban on pellet guns, but to be used in rare cases, 29 August 2016
- IANS via Madhyamam: Kashmir Valley remains shut for 58th day, 5 September 2016
- Kashmir Life: Closed Doors, 12 September 2016
- Human Rights Watch: Arsonists torch 25th school in India's Kashmir, 31 October 2016
- Al Jazeera: Who is burning down Kashmir's schools?, 11 November 2016
- PTI via Deccan Herald: Normality in Kashmir after 133-day unrest, 19 November 2016
- PTI via DT Next: 4 months on, normalcy back in J&K, 19 November 2016
- Kashmir Life: On separatists' call, Kashmir resumes routine, 19 November 2016
- The Quint: Kashmir Reader on stands after 3-month ban, 28 December 2016
- Newslaundry: The Kashmir Reader is back, 28 December 2016
- PTI via Business Standard: Over 2,600 cases of stone pelting till Dec 31, 3 January 2017
- Scroll: Special teams will look into use of excessive force, says Mehbooba Mufti, 9 January 2017
- PTI via Business Standard: Consider means other than pellet guns, SC to Centre, 27 March 2017
- IANS via Morung Express: Consider alternatives to pellet guns in Kashmir, says SC, 27 March 2017
- Tribune: Look for alternative to pellet guns, says SC, 28 March 2017
- The Quint: Street violence down, Kashmir is quieter, 23 September 2017
- Kashmir Reader: Govt says only 51 people were killed in eight months of unrest, 13 January 2018
- Kashmir Life: 676 persons detained under PSA in 2016-17, January 2018
- Scroll: 2,729 youngsters arrested in 2017, 129 booked under PSA, January 2018
- Kashmir Life: At her father's grave, Mehbooba apologises for her "toffee" remark, 7 January 2019
- Kashmir Life: HC rejects plea to ban pellet guns, 11 March 2020
- Kashmir Life: Mehbooba faces political firestorm over pellet gun remarks, 26 July 2026
- ETV Bharat: J&K pellet victim gets Rs 41.16 lakh, seeks ban on pellet guns, 30 July 2026
- Kashmir Life: Kashmir's Pellet Memories, 11 August 2026