New Delhi: On Wednesday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh convened an important meeting with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Indian Air Force Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, Army Chief General Upendra Dwiwedi, and Navy Chief Dinesh Tripathi to address the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which resulted in the deaths of 26 individuals, primarily tourists. The discussions focused on the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir, as reported by news agency ANI. Further deliberations on this matter are anticipated in the Cabinet Committee on Security meeting scheduled for today, according to the sources.
The Defence Minister received updates from Army Chief General Upendra Dwiwedi and Navy Chief Dinesh Tripathi regarding the security conditions in Pahalgam and its vicinity following the attack. As per the sources cited by ANI, senior officials have been dispatched to the impacted regions, local security forces are on high alert, and additional troops are being deployed to conduct search and destroy operations aimed at apprehending the terrorists responsible for the incident.
The source informed ANI that more troops have been sent to the vicinity of the attack site to facilitate these operations. Previously, on Tuesday, the Defence Minister conveyed his profound sorrow regarding the attack, denouncing it as a cowardly and despicable act against innocent civilians.
Minister Singh expressed profound sorrow upon learning of the terrorist attack in Pahalgam (Jammu & Kashmir). He condemned this heinous act against innocent civilians as cowardly and utterly unacceptable. His thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families, as stated in a post on X. One naval officer, Lieutenant Vinay Narwal, tragically lost his life in the attack that occurred on Tuesday afternoon in the Baisaran meadow, often referred to as ‘mini Switzerland’.
On Wednesday, April 23, security agencies released sketches of the suspects involved in this deadly attack, which has prompted a large-scale manhunt to apprehend those responsible for this significant act of terrorism targeting civilians in the region. The suspects have been identified as Asif Fauji, Suleman Shah, and Abu Talha, according to officials cited in a PTI news agency report, who also noted that these individuals are known by code names — Moosa, Yunus, and Asif — and have been linked to previous terror-related incidents in Poonch.
