KEY POINTS
- Terrorists checked religion and killed Hindus.
- 70 suspects under investigation for helping attackers.
- Survivors confirmed Hindus were targeted and shot.
Shocking revelations have surfaced from the preliminary investigation into the Pahalgam terror attack, where 26 Hindu tourists were cold-bloodedly murdered by jihadi terrorists. A joint investigation team, comprising Army officers, J&K Police, and members of the J&K administration, conducted an initial examination of the victims’ bodies. Disturbingly, they found that the trousers of around 20 victims were either unzipped or pulled down — a chilling confirmation that the terrorists checked the religion of each victim before executing them.
The terrorists reportedly verified the victims’ religion by checking for circumcision — a religious practice mandated in Islam. This finding aligns with multiple eyewitness accounts, which confirmed that the terrorists interrogated the victims about their names and religious identity. Victims were asked to recite the Kalma — the Islamic declaration of faith — to prove they were Muslim. Those who failed were shot dead. The terrorists also demanded to see identity cards and physically inspected the victims to check for circumcision before killing them.
After the massacre, the bodies were transported to the Anantnag District Hospital. Hospital staff received the bodies in the same brutalized state they had been left in after the shootings.
The investigation has already led to intense scrutiny of terror networks operating in the region. Initially, around 1,500 overground workers (OGWs) and terror sympathisers were rounded up for questioning regarding their possible involvement in aiding the attackers. This number has since been narrowed down to about 70 individuals, who are now strongly suspected of providing logistical support to the terrorists. “We hope to narrow the search further and get to the real culprits soon,” a senior J&K administration official stated.
Eyewitness Accounts Paint a Horrific Picture
Debasish Bhattacharyya, an Associate Professor at Assam University and a survivor of the attack, shared that he managed to save his life by reciting the Kalma when confronted by the terrorists.
Asavari Jagdale, the daughter of 54-year-old businessman Santosh Jagdale from Pune, recounted the harrowing final moments of her father. The terrorists confronted Santosh, ordered him to recite an Islamic verse, and when he failed, they shot him — first behind his ear, then in the head, and finally in the back.
Similarly, Bharat Bhushan, a 41-year-old tech professional from Bengaluru, was mercilessly gunned down right in front of his wife and three-year-old son after the terrorists confirmed his Hindu identity.
Among the 26 victims were two foreigners and two local residents, highlighting the indiscriminate brutality of the attack.
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