A Son of the Soil: Syed Adil Hussain Shah’s Final Ride of Courage

Srinagar 23 August : Pahalgam, often called ‘Mini Switzerland’ for its breathtaking beauty, turned into a landscape of horror and sorrow on what began as just another bright spring day. The meadows of Baisaran, usually echoing with laughter and camera clicks, were instead filled with screams and chaos as bullets shattered the peace — and many lives on 22nd of April.

Among the 27 innocent lives lost in Tuesday’s horrifying terror attack, one belonged to a young Kashmiri Muslim — Syed Adil Hussain Shah. A pony ride operator by profession, Shah had spent countless days ferrying tourists from the car park up to the meadow, building a livelihood one ride at a time, one smile at a time.

That morning, like many before, he left home hoping for a day of good earnings — the tourist season was at its peak, and business was steady. But by afternoon, the rhythm of the season came to a brutal halt. Armed terrorists stormed the meadow and began firing at tourists.

Adil wasn’t one of the intended targets. He could’ve turned away. But he didn’t.

When violence erupted, Adil was with a tourist. Witnesses say he tried to shield the person from the attackers, even attempting to snatch the gun from one of the terrorists. It was then that he was shot — a young man who met death not as a bystander, but as a protector.

Back home, worry turned into dread. His father, Syed Haider Shah, recounted the painful hours. “My son went to Pahalgam yesterday to work, and around 3 pm, we heard about the attack. We called him, but his phone was switched off. Later, at 4:40 pm, it turned on, but no one answered. We rushed to the police station, and that’s when we learned he had been shot in the attack,” he told . With heartbreak thick in his voice, he added, “Whoever is responsible must face the consequences.”

But it was his mother’s grief that pierced deepest — her wails echoing a pain only a mother can know. “He was the sole earning member of the family. Oh Allah, what have you done?” she cried, her world shattered in an instant.

Today, hundreds came to bid Adil farewell. Among them stood Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who personally attended the funeral to honor the young man’s courage. Standing before Adil’s family, he said, “What can I say? Our guests had come for holidays. Unfortunately, they have been sent in coffins. This young man worked hard to earn a living. He left home for work. Unfortunately, we returned his body in a coffin.”

The Chief Minister continued, his voice heavy with emotion, “But we have heard he did not die just like that. He proved his bravery. He tried to stop the attack, he probably tried to snatch a gun and then was targeted. We will have to take care of his family. I have come to assure them that the administration is with them. We will do what we can.”