Will hunt down terrorists behind Pahalgam attack, says Amit Shah at Delhi event

NEW DELHI: Home minister Amit Shah on Thursday said the government will hunt down those behind the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam and the terrorists will have to answer for the heinous act.

“Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we have given a strong reply to everything, be it the north east, the areas of Left Wing Extremism or the shadow of terrorism in Kashmir,” Shah said at an event to unveil a statue of Upendra Nath Brahma, the patriarch of Assam’s Bodo community, and name a road after him.

“And if those who indulge in terror think that killing 27 citizens was a big victory, I want to tell them that this is not the end. We will hunt down each and every perpetrator,” the home minister said, promising to avenge the deaths.

To be sure, 26 people, mostly tourists, were killed in the April 22 attack. One more person, a 31-year-old doctor from Tamil Nadu who was injured in the attack, is critical and on ventilatory support at Delhi’s AIIMS.

“It is our resolve to uproot terrorism from every inch of this country and it will be fulfilled. In this fight, not only 140 crore people of this country but the entire world is standing with India against terrorism. Our fight will continue till terrorism is eliminated. Those who have done this act (terrorist attack) will be suitably punished,” Shah said.

On April 22, a group of heavily armed terrorists emerged from the woods and targeted tourists on the Baisaran grassland near Pahalgam, the attack reminiscent of the heyday of terrorism in the 1990s and 2000s and the worst attack on civilians in India since the 2008 Mumbai terror strikes.

The political leadership has promised a muscular response.

Last week, Modi said India will pursue terrorists to the ends of the earth. Defence minister Rajnath Singh has spoken about punishing not only those who carried out the horrific attack but also their handlers --- interpreted as a stern warning to Pakistan.

Since the attack, India has already unfurled a bouquet of punitive diplomatic measures, suspending the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, downgrading bilateral ties, expelling most Pakistani citizens in India, and shutting down the only operational land border crossing at Attari.

Pakistan has also unveiled tit-for-tat reactions to punitive measures announced by India but neither side has thus far indicated its intent to abandon the ceasefire. It has closed its airspace to Indian airlines, suspended all trade with India, and has threatened to suspend bilateral pacts such as the Simla Agreement.

Turning to the people who lost their family members in the terror attack, Shah said, “I want to tell the family of those killed in the terrorist attack that this loss is not only yours, but every citizen of the country is equally sad”.

Among those present at the event were Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta and Assam chief minister Hemanta Biswa Sarma. Shah unveiled the statue of Bodo leader Upendranath Brahma -- Bodo social activist and the former president of All Bodo Students’ Union --- and paid tribute to his legacy on his 35th death anniversary. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has renamed a stretch, Lala Lajpat Rai Marg in South Delhi, as Bodofa Upendranath Brahma Marg.