The tragedy at Dubjan in Shopian is not just another incident — it is an open wound that continues to bleed. Yet, disturbingly, it is being treated like a public spectacle.
A four-year-old child slipped into the Rambiara stream five days ago. Five days — long enough for a family’s world to collapse, yet not long enough to bring them answers.
For five days, the child’s parents have lived in a nightmare that refuses to end. Sleep has abandoned them. Peace has vanished. Every passing hour echoes the same painful question: Where is our child?
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But while the family suffers in silence, many around them are doing something else — recording videos, taking photos, posting clips, and chasing attention.
This is not awareness. This is not concern. This is exploitation of grief.
Think about the parents. Their young son is gone, taken by the water. They don’t even have a body to hold, to mourn, or to bury. There is no closure — only waiting, hoping, and slowly breaking from within.
Now imagine strangers pointing cameras at you in your darkest moment, turning your pain into content. If that does not disturb us, then something is deeply wrong.
There is a clear difference between those who come to help and those who come to watch. Those helping are silent, focused, and respectful. Those watching are loud, visible, and unnecessary.
Standing with a phone does not make anyone part of the solution. It makes them part of the problem.
Meanwhile, rescue teams — including Jammu and Kashmir Police, SDRF, NDRF, and local volunteers — have been working tirelessly, day and night, searching the stream to bring closure to the grieving family.
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Their effort is real. Their struggle is real.
And yet, their work is often reduced to background footage in someone’s video. That is not just insensitive — it is disgraceful.
At the same time, there are people who quietly step forward. Locals are bringing food, water, and support for rescue teams. Elderly men, some over 70 years old, are joining the search without seeking attention — driven only by humanity.
One such local, Mohammad Jabar, said, “If you cannot help, at least step back. Why record a family that has lost their child? What is the need to go live in such moments?”
His words reflect a truth many feel but few say.
This tragedy should force us to ask ourselves difficult questions. When did empathy become optional? When did someone’s pain become content?
This is not the time to prove how active we are on social media. This is the time to prove whether we still have a conscience.
Stop recording. Stop posting. Stop turning grief into content.
Let the family grieve with dignity — not under the gaze of cameras.Because the tragedy is not only what happened in the water.It is also how we are responding to it on land.
Disclaimer: This article is an opinion piece written by journalist Ajaz Dar from Shopian. The views expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Asian News Hub (ANH). He can be reached at ajazdar890@gmail.com.
