A 42-year-old mother who visited Srinagar city centre last week to buy clothes for her three children, aged five to seven, returned home dead on Tuesday, losing her battle to injuries inflicted by a grenade blast.

The killing of the mother, Abida Akhtar alias Summaya, has led to mourning across Kashmir.

A brother of the woman called her a “martyr” and asked if Kashmir was not safe for people. He said those involved were “beasts” and should be punished. He questioned why no CCTV footage was released although more than a week had passed since the November 3 attack.

“She is a martyr. Her head was pierced by splinters. I want justice for his children,” he said.

The attack at a crowded “Sunday market”, visited by thousands, near the Tourist Reception Centre left a dozen shoppers injured, further fuelling suspicion that itwas an inside plot.

The attack took place a day after National Conference president Farooq Abdullah alleged there was a domestic conspiracy behind a spurt in militancy-related incidents in Kashmir to destabilise his son Omar Abdullah’s government.

Kashmir was rocked by a series of attacks and gunfights after Omar took office as chief minister on October 16. Farooq had alleged the involvement of “agencies” and demanded an “independent inquiry”.

Following the grenade attack, Omar asked lieutenant governor (LG) Manoj Sinha’s administration to curb such activities. Under the hybrid model of governance, the LG is responsible for handling security-related issues.

“The last few days have been dominated by headlines of attacks & encounters in parts of the Valley. Today’s news of a grenade attack on innocent shoppers at the ‘Sunday market’ in Srinagar is deeply disturbing,” Omar had posted on X onNovember 3.

The attack mounted pressure on the security forces. Two days later, the police said they had arrested three accused, all residents of a Srinagar locality.

They were presented before a media conference by top police officers including inspector-general of police (IGP) V.K. Birdi, apparently to rebuff the allegations of an inside plot.

Birdi had claimed the three were part of the Lashkar-e-Toiba and had been booked under the Public Safety Act.

“In the attack, a woman named Abida was seriously wounded. She has little kids. Similarly, Habibullah, who is the lone bread earner for his family, was also seriously injured. Habibullah has a bedridden son at his home,” the IGP said.

The three accused were identified as Usama Yasin Sheikh, Umar Fayaz Shiekh and Afnan Ahmed, all residents of Ikhrajpora, Srinagar.

Grenade blasts at crowded localities were common during the early years of militancy but such incidents had stopped long ago.