A National Investigation Agency (NIA) member at the residence of Samir Guha, one of the 26 people killed in the Pahalgam terror attack, in Kolkata, West Bengal on Saturday
| Photo Credit:
PTI
Srinagar
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over the probe into the Pahalgam terror attack, even as police launched a sweeping crackdown across Kashmir destroying the houses of nine terrorists and detaining hundreds for questioning.
Following directives from the Counter Terrorism and Counter Radicalization (CTCR) division of Union Ministry of Home Affairs, the NIA has formally taken over the investigation into the Pahalgam terror attack, which left 26 civilians dead in one of the deadliest assaults on tourists in the 35-year history of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir.
The anti-terror agency has registered a fresh FIR in connection with the terror case.
Sources told buinessline that the NIA teams had been inspecting Baisaran meadows, the actual terror site, since April 23 to collect every piece of evidence related to the attack.
Assisted by the forensic experts, the NIA teams, led by a Deputy Inspector General-rank officer, are also questioning the eyewitnesses.
The terror attack on April 22 sent shockwaves across the nation with its sheer magnitude leaving the people reeling.
Massive crackdown
Following the attack, security forces launched a large-scale crackdown across south Kashmir. At least 175 suspects were detained from Anantnag district for questioning. The detentions occurred after the security forces carried out a series of takedown operations across the district.
Sources informed that dozens of youth have also been picked by police from the other south Kashmir districts including Shopian and Pulwama.
The south Kashmir emerged as an epicentre of militancy after the killing the Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in 2016, who reanimated militancy in the Valley. The graph of militancy, however, declined since 2019, as the government took more strong-arm
House demolitions
Since the terrorist attack, the homes of at least nine terrorists were destroyed by blowing them up using controlled explosives. The terrorists are affiliated to proscribed terrorist outfits including Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohamamd and Hizbul Mujahideen and suspected to be linked to the April 22 terror attack.
The properties were reduced into detritus in both north and south Kashmir districts of the Valley.
However, the families of the terrorist termed the action as “collective punishment”. In videos circulating on social media, family members said that they had no involvement in their children’s actions and that the forces were free to hold them accountable.
Published on April 27, 2025
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