Srinagar, April 22: One tourist was killed in a terrorist attack at Pahalgam hill station in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday. At the same time, 12 others including tourists and locals were injured.

Terrorists attacked a group of tourists in the Baisaran area of ​​​​Pahalgam hill station, killing one tourist and injuring nine other tourists and three locals.

According to the information received, 2 to 3 terrorists wearing army uniforms started firing at the tourists riding horses in the Baisaran area at around 2.30 pm. Baisaran is a small grassland 3 to 4 km from Pahalgam market and tourists resort to horses to reach here, as there is no motorable road to reach here.

“One tourist was killed and 12 others, including tourists and locals, were injured in the attack. The injured were rushed to Pahalgam hospital from where three seriously injured were shifted to Srinagar for specialised treatment,” an official said. He said security forces have cordoned off the area to trace the attackers.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah wrote on Xpost, “I am incredibly shocked. This attack on our visitors is a despicable act. The perpetrators of this attack are animals, inhuman and despicable. No words are enough to condemn. I offer my condolences to the families of the deceased. I have spoken to my colleague Sakina Itoo and she has left for the hospital to oversee arrangements for the injured. I am returning to Srinagar immediately.”

CM Abdullah wrote in another post, “The number of casualties is still being ascertained, so I do not want to go into those details. They will be officially disclosed when the situation becomes clearer. Needless to say, this attack is far bigger than any attack on civilians in recent years.”

PDP president and former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti wrote on Twitter, “I strongly condemn the cowardly attack on tourists in Pahalgam, which tragically left five people dead and many injured. Such violence is unacceptable and must be condemned. Historically, Kashmir has warmly welcomed tourists, making this rare incident extremely worrying. A thorough investigation is needed to bring the perpetrators to justice and investigate possible security lapses. Ensuring the safety of visitors is paramount, and steps must be taken to prevent future attacks. Our condolences are with the victims and their families.”

Reacting to the incident, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha expressed deep outrage and described the attack as “cowardly”. He assured the people of Jammu and Kashmir that those responsible for this heinous act will not be spared. He has spoken to the DGP and security officials. Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police teams have reached the area and started a search operation.

He said in a post on Twitter, “I strongly condemn the cowardly terrorist attack on tourists in Pahalgam. I assure the people that those behind this heinous attack will not be spared. Have spoken to the DGP and security officials. Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police teams have reached the area and started a search operation. Have directed the district administration and health officials to provide immediate medical facilities to those admitted in Pahalgam. An injured tourist has been rushed to GMC Anantnag. I pray for the speedy recovery of all the injured.”

This is the first terrorist attack on tourists in the Kashmir Valley in 2025, while the tourist season in the valley is increasing rapidly at this time.

All the hotels in Srinagar city and tourist resorts in Pahalgam, Gulmarg and Sonamarg are fully occupied.

An unprecedented number of tourists are expected to visit Jammu and Kashmir this year and according to official estimates, around two crore tourists will visit the Union Territory this year.

Tuesday’s attack comes at a time when registration for this year’s Amarnath Yatra is underway across the country.

This year the yatra will begin on July 3 and end on August 9, coinciding with the festivals of Shravan Purnima and Raksha Bandhan, respectively.

During his visit to Jammu and Kashmir last month, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had chaired a high-level security review meeting where he had ordered complete eradication of terrorism with special focus on the Jammu division.

He had also given directions to ensure zero tolerance towards infiltration. The meeting was attended by the Union Home Secretary, IB Director, Army Chief, GoCs of all corps in Jammu and Kashmir, chiefs of paramilitary forces, Jammu and Kashmir DGP and intelligence officials.

Recently, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha had stressed that to completely free Jammu and Kashmir from the curse of terrorism, the entire ecosystem of terrorism, including terrorists, their overground workers (OGWs) and supporters, will have to be dealt with.

Mumbai: Mumbai Police claims to have seized drugs worth Rs 10 crore. The ATC team of Mumbai Police’s Chuna Bhatti Police has arrested a suspect, identified as Rahim Majeed Sheikh, 30, of Dongri Link Road, Gujarat. He was arrested for selling one kilogram 907 grams of hashish, estimated to be worth Rs 19 million, in Mumbai. He was about to come to sell it in Mumbai city. He has been arrested and a case has been registered against him under the NDPS Act. In this case, the police conducted a raid in Gujarat’s Valsad and arrested Nitin Shantilal Tandel. 8 kilograms 164 grams of Afghan hashish, estimated to be worth Rs 8 crore, total value Rs 10 crore 56 thousand, was recovered from his possession. It is said that the two accused have been arrested and their investigation is underway. This operation was carried out by Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Pansalkar, Special Commissioner Devin Bharti, Joint Police Commissioner Satyanarayan Chaudhary, Additional Commissioner Dr. Mahesh Patil and Senior Inspector Nisha Jadhav under the leadership of DCP Nunath Dhole. Both the accused belong to Gujarat and both of them used to bring Afghan and high-quality hashish to sell in Mumbai.

Mumbai: After the murder of NCP Ajit Pawar group senior leader Baba Siddiqui, his son Zeeshan Siddiqui has now received a death threat, after which the police have increased the security of the house and have registered a case of threat against an unknown person. In addition, a section of the IT Act has also been applied. Zeeshan Siddiqui has received a threat through an email, which has been asked to pay Rs 10 crore as ransom, otherwise he will face the same fate as his father. The police reached Zeeshan Siddiqui’s house and reviewed the security arrangements, as well as registered a case of threat and its investigation is underway.
The threatening email also mentions D Company. This threatening email was received two days ago, in which it was made clear that he should pay Rs 100 million and it would be mailed to him as a reminder every 6 hours. No clue has been found regarding the mail so far. The police have started an investigation. Baba Siddiqui was killed by the shooters of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang on October 12, 2024 and the attackers fled. In this case, shooter Shiv Kumar and 26 other conspirators have also been arrested and MCOCA has been applied against them. In this case, Zeeshan Akhtar, Shubham Lonkar are still absconding, while Lawrence Bishnoi has also been included in the list of accused. Lawrence Bishnoi had targeted Baba Siddiqui to terrorize Salman Khan, now Zeeshan is also on his target, but now D Company has sent a threatening email. Efforts are being made to find out whether the email was sent by D Company or someone used the name of D Company. The Mumbai Crime Branch is also conducting a parallel investigation into this matter.