An Indian Navy lieutenant was among 26 people killed last month as terrorists opened fire in the tourist hotspot of Pahalgam — triggering pan India outrage and calls for immediate retaliation. A photo of Himanshi Narwal sitting next to her slain husband soon became a viral symbol of the carnage, with many including official handles sharing a Studio Ghibli version of the image. But a recent appeal for peace and unity appears to have turned public sentiment sharply against Narwal — with some going as far as to insist that she was “involved in the event” and “hand a hand in getting her husband killed”.
“I just want the entire nation to pray for him, that wherever he is, he remains healthy and happy…We don’t want people going against Muslims or Kashmiris. We want peace and only peace. Of course, we want justice,” Narwal had said earlier this week.
The remarks have prompted sharp criticism from several quarters of the internet — with an outpouring of hate and fake propaganda against Narwal. Many insinuated that her “JNU roots” made it evident that her comments were not about peace but rather an “agenda to absolve terrorists and cheer Pakistan”. Others dug deep into her social media and background to make claims about her acquaintances and suggested that she was using the death of her husband “as an opportunity to climb social and political ladder”.
Internet trolls have since highlighted minute details from her life before marriage — from an old Google review of a Jawed Habib salon (he was ‘boycotted’ in 2022 for spitting on a woman’s hair) to the innocuous photo of a JNU peer that she had ‘liked’ on Instagram.
Her marriage and honeymoon destination also came under scrutiny — with some claiming without any evidence that the trip was “her idea” and insisting that she had “no remorse” for the loss of her husband. The couple had married on April 16 before heading to Kashmir for their honeymoon. Relatives said they had settled on Pahalgam as the visa for Switzerland was taking too long.
The outpouring of hate has also prompted counter-criticism with many including activist and author Gurmehar Kaur speaking out in support of Narwal and accusing internet trolls of using a victim to ‘gain traction’ on the internet.
“Makes me question whether they truly care about the terrorist attack and the victims. At this point they just want clout out of the incident and is using a victim from the attack to gain traction and further their narrative. Vile social media vultures,” fumed one Reddit user.
“Even his father said not to spread hate against all the kashmiris, but guess who’s facing the backlash,” wrote another.
“Yesterday, I was tagged in countless tweets by the right-wing ecosystem mocking Himanshi Narwal. It was vile. That they would attack someone in deep grief just because her words didn’t fit their hateful narrative is horrifying — but sadly, not surprising anymore,” Kaur wrote on X while sharing an open letter to the victim.