Political standstill, assassination and upheavals: J&K's 2018 in nutshell

The BJP and the PDP, the ruling coalition, had had enough of each other. In June, BJP yanked support from Mehbooba Mufti's government

In 2018, Jammu & Kashmir has been roiled by upheavals, political contestation and assassinations on a scale not seen in recent years. It began after the rape of an eight-year-old in Kathua, a small town near the border with Punjab. State leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party were seen supporting the men accused of kidnapping, gang-raping and killing the child from a Muslim tribal community. Two BJP lawmakers even participated in a rally to demand justice for the arrested men, all Hindus. As tensions rose, by June, the BJP and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), the ruling coalition, had had