Three Terrorists Killed on Monday were Pahalgam Attackers, All Three Pakistani Nationals: Amit Shah

Manas Dasgupta

NEW DELHI, July 29: The three terrorists killed during the “Operation Mahadev” in Dachigam forests near Srinagar on Monday were those who had perpetrated the heinous attack on the innocent tourists in Pahalgam on April 22 brutally killing 26 of them and the government has conclusive proof that all the three were Pakistani nationals, the Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

Stating that India has avenged the ruthless killings of the tourists after establishing their religious identity, Mr Shah speaking during the Operation Sindoor debate, said three terrorists identified as Suleiman, Afghani and Gibran, were killed in a joint operation of the Army, CRPF and Jammu and Kashmir police yesterday. Suleiman, he said, was a top Lashkar commander and security agencies have evidence of his involvement in the Pahalgam attack. Afghan and Gibran, too, were “A-listed” terrorists.

The Minister said the identity of terrorists and their involvement was confirmed with the help of ballistic and forensic reports and four other witnesses, including two accused who gave them shelter a day before the attack. Pakistani voter identity cards and chocolates made in Pakistan were found on the two terrorists, establishing that they came from Pakistan.

“I want to tell Parliament and the nation that those who murdered our citizens in Baisaran Valley, these three were among them and they were killed,” he said, congratulating the security personnel on their success in Operation Mahadev. The Home Minister said he landed in Srinagar hours after the terror attack in Pahalgam and chaired a security meeting that night and the next morning. “We ensured that the terrorists could not escape to Pakistan,” he said. The Minister said since locals were not joining the ranks, Pakistan was sending terrorists from across the border to strike terror.

“We ensured that the terrorists do not flee to Pakistan,” the Minister said. Suleiman alias Faisal is an A category Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist who was involved in Pahalgam and October 2024 Gagangir terror attacks. Afghan and Gibran are also LeT terrorists. “The three terrorists who killed our civilians at Baisaran meadow in Pahalgam have been killed,” the Minister said.

“Two AK-47 rifles, an America-made M9 carbine rifle were recovered on their bodies. The spent cartridges recovered from Baisaran (Pahalgam) meadow were matched with the weapons recovered during Operation Mahadev yesterday. These weapons were flown on a special plane to Chandigarh forensic laboratory last night. I had a video call with six ballistic experts at 5 am today, they confirmed the use of these weapons at Pahalgam,” Mr Shah said.

He said the first information about the presence of terrorists in the Dachigam area was received on May 22. “On May 22, IB got human intelligence that the presence of terrorists had been tracked in Dachigam. With the help of an equipment made by our agencies, communication signals were tracked from May 22-July 22, and continuous attempts were made to track them. IB and Army set out on foot patrolling to catch the signals. We got the first confirmation on July 22 with the help of sensors. 4 Para unit of Army, CRPF and J&K police jawans cornered the terrorists. Five human assets were also sent and we killed the three terrorists who killed the innocent civilians,” the Minister said.

The National investigation Agency (NIA) had earlier arrested two men who provided food and shelter to the terrorists a day before the attack. “NIA has arrested two accused- Bashir and Parvez, who provided them food in their dhok (hut), two kilometres away (from Baisaran meadow) on April 21 at 8 pm. Two were wearing black clothes, they had tea, food, and while leaving, also took away some spices from the hut,” the Minister said.

He said NIA interviewed all victims, 1055 people, including victims of the terror attack, their family members, pony riders, photographers, those working in nearby for more than 3000 hours and everything was recorded on video.

Explaining how the government confirmed that these three terrorists were involved in the Pahalgam attack, the Home Minister said, “NIA earlier arrested those who sheltered these terrorists. When their bodies were brought to Srinagar, we got them to identify the bodies.”

For further confirmation, he said, forensic reports of bullet shells recovered from the Pahalgam attack site were used. “After these terrorists were killed, their rifles were seized. One was an M9, the other two were AK-47s. We got these rifles flown to Chandigarh central FSL (forensic science laboratory) on a special plane. We generated empty bullet shells by firing these rifles and then matched them with those found in Pahalgam. It was then confirmed that these three rifles were used to murder our innocent civilians,” Mr Shah said, as BJP MPs cheered.

“There is no room for doubt. I am holding the ballistic report, six scientists have cross-checked it and confirmed to me over video call that the bullets fired at Pahalgam and the bullets fired from these guns are a 100 per cent match,” he said. The Home Minister said Prime Minister Narendra Modi eliminated the masters of terror during Operation Sindoor. “And now, the Army and CRPF finished those terrorists too,” he said.

Mr Shah also targeted the opposition, particularly the Congress leader and a former union home minister P Chidambaram who on Monday had questioned the identity of the Pahalgam attackers and their Pakistani links. Mr Shah said he had expected that the news of the Pahalgam killers’ elimination would be celebrated on both sides of the political aisle. “But their faces have blackened. What kind of politics is this? Terrorists are dead, you are not happy?”

“I was pained when former Home Minister (P) Chidambaram ji questioned what the proof is that the terrorists came from Pakistan. What does he want to say? What will he gain by shielding Pakistan? I want to tell Chidambaram ji, we have proof that all three were Pakistanis. We have the Pakistan voter numbers for two of the three. We found chocolates manufactured in Pakistan on them. In front of the whole world, this country’s former Home Minister is giving a clean chit to Pakistan,” Mr Shah said, triggering loud protests from the Opposition benches.

The BJP leader accused Chidambaram of defending Pakistan by casting doubt on the terrorists’ origin. The Union Home Minister said, “Yesterday they (Congress) were asking us where the terrorists came from and who was responsible for it. Of course, it is our responsibility as we are in power.”

Mr Chidambaram had sparked controversy with his remarks on the Pahalgam attack. Mr Chidambaram had said the attackers “for all we know could be homegrown terrorists” and questioned, “why do you assume that they came from Pakistan?” There is no evidence of that. They are also hiding the losses.” However, later, Chidambaram clarified that his remarks had been taken out of context.

Mr Shah in a typically combative speech, also said, “I thought the opposition would be happy to know the perpetrators of the Pahalgam attack are dead… but it seems they are upset…” “The opposition seems upset terrorists were killed…” the Home Minister shouted angrily, “The opposition sees only the religion of the terrorists. Do they (the opposition) speak to Pak?”

“Civilians were killed in front of their families by (terrorists) who asked their religion. I condemn this barbaric act. I express my sympathies to the families who lost their loved ones,” he said.

Mr Shah also criticised the Congress-led federal governments in the past for failing to respond with military force to terror attacks during its time in power. “Between 2005 and 11, there were 27 terrorists attacks. What did Congress governments do? They just sent dossiers to Pakistan…” he noted with regrets.