Pahalgam attack: Terrorists attacked tourists at the Baisaran valley in Pahalgam, killing 25 Indian nationals and one Nepali citizen, and leaving several others injured. The incident has sent shockwaves across the nation and the international community.
As per sources, the ‘Attari-Wagah border’ crossing point between India and Pakistan was completely shut on Thursday (May 1) after a week-long heavy rush of people from either side (the two countries) to cross over after the Union government ordered all Pakistani citizens with short-term visa to leave India in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack The Attari-Wagah border crossing point is now completely closed, and no one from either country crossed over to the other side today, sources confirmed.
A total of 125 Pakistani nationals left India on Wednesday (April 30) through the Attari-Wagah border, taking the total number of Pakistanis leaving the country to 911 in the last seven days. Fifteen Indian citizens with Pakistani visa also crossed over to Pakistan yesterday, taking the total number of such people exiting India to 23.
Similarly, 152 Indian nationals and 73 Pakistani nationals with long-term Indian visa have entered India through the international border crossing point in Punjab’s Amritsar district, taking the total number of such people to 1,617 and 224, respectively.
‘Leave India’ notice
The Centre issued the ‘Leave India’ notice to Pakistani nationals after 26 people, mostly tourists, were killed by terrorists with Pakistan links in Kashmir’s Pahalgam on April 22 (Tuesday).
NIA DG reaches Pahalgam for probe
After taking over the investigation related to the Pahalgam terror attack case, National Investigation Agency (NIA) Director General Sadanand Date on Thursday arrived at Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam as the agency began its probe into the matter. Earlier on Sunday, the NIA took over the Pahalgam terror attack case from Jammu and Kashmir Police and began its investigation into the deadly attack that resulted in the killing of 26 tourists, sources said.
The Central anti-terror agency formally registered a fresh FIR on late Saturday following an order issued from the Counter Terrorism and Counter Radicalisation (CTCR) division of the Ministry of Home Affairs considering the gravity of the case, as Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba’s proxy, the Resistance Front (TRF), has claimed responsibility for the attack. The NIA took over the case five days after the incident and four days after its team visited the attack site and started supporting the Jammu and Kashmir Police in probing what is considered the deadliest assault on civilians in the region in almost twenty years.
Official sources privy to the development told the media that “the NIA has formally taken over the case from the Jammu and Kashmir Police and stated its investigation.” The NIA team is expected to conduct a thorough assessment of the attack site, collect forensic evidence, and help in identifying those responsible for the carnage. The NIA’s move comes amid intelligence agencies compiling a list of 14 local terrorists actively operating in the Union Territory.
