Pahalgam terror attack: Kashmir’s dark day reopens old wounds

India is a nation in mourning. At least 26 innocent civilians have been gunned down in Kashmir in broad daylight. This dastardly terror attack has few parallels. Reports say four to six armed men descended from the nearby forests on to the Baisaran meadow and fired at unsuspecting men in the popular tourist hill town of Pahalgam. The valley, in happier times called ‘mini-Switzerland’, is accessible only on foot or by horse-back and tourists were relaxing in the afternoon sunlight. It will be a long, long time before these blood stains in the valley fade.

After terrorists fired indiscriminately – dressed in camouflage and kurta pyjamas – helicopters were pressed into service to evacuate those injured. It is believed that at least two of the militants were locals who had returned to the valley recently after receiving training outside. A final assessment on casualties is awaited but what we know is enough to numb the senses. Tourists from across the country have been thronging to Pahalgam of late and especially in the summer.

Amidst the shock there is anger across the country and as emotions run high it collectively demands retribution for the killings. The image of a young woman sitting on the ground, dazed, next to the body of her husband has seeped into our heartbroken conscience. She was newly married, still wearing the traditional wedding bangles and had travelled to Pahalgam for her honeymoon. Instead, she will go back home a widow.

Some victims were shot dead in front of their wives and small children. A family was celebrating the son’s exam results. Another newly married couple was visiting. A man was shot dead while on a pony ride. A victim was killed as he disembarked from a tourist bus. The stories coming out of Pahalgam are heartbreaking. Two foreign nationals are also reportedly amongst those killed.

Families were in Kashmir to make happy memories. Instead, many women are now accompanying their husbands’ dead body on the return flight. And, as homes of these families go silent, India asks, how many more terror attacks can its land and people endure?

The attack took place at a time when US Vice-President J.D. Vance is visiting India. Incongruously, at least to a nation in grief, he continued his trip to the Taj Mahal a day after the brazen attack. Prime Minister Modi, who was in Saudi Arabia, cut his visit short and returned home. Law and order and paramilitary forces in Jammu and Kashmir fall under the purview of the centre and specifically under the Ministry of Home Affairs. Soon after the events unfolded Home Minister Amit Shah rushed to the capital Srinagar. There are allegations of Intelligence failure, and that the meadow was completely bereft of security personnel. But those questions and accountability are for the future. At this stage the one clarity is that terrorism has not been wiped out. Where does India go from here and what is a befitting reply?

It was in 2019 when a convoy carrying security personnel on the Jammu-Srinagar Highway was attacked by a suicide bomber who rammed an explosives laden vehicle into the convoy. 40 soldiers were killed in what is remembered as the Pulwama attack and terror organisation Jaish-e-Mohammed claimed responsibility. The attack at Pahalgam is the deadliest since Pulwama. There is more than just suspicion that the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba is behind the Pahalgam attack through its front, The Resistance Front (TRF).

The attack also hits at the government’s tourism focus on the state that was vital for its normalcy push in the valley. It was an economy boost in a paradise with a troubled past and images of tourists fleeing Kashmir are déjà vu and show how tenuous that ‘normalcy’ was. There has been an increase in infiltration in recent months. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has called the attack an abomination. ‘The perpetrators of this attack are animals, inhuman and worthy of contempt.’ In the past he has differed with the centre’s view that normalcy was restored, instead terming the situation in the state a process.

An emotional nation wants to see the perpetrators punished and all eyes will be on the government in the coming days. It will need to act strongly to not just reassure but to also keep focus on eradicating terror. Along the way it must ensure that its people are not blighted by communal responses. There have been candle marches in Pahalgam for the victims and Indians need to stand united in this hour of grief. High level talks are on but once the mist clears, accountability needs to be pinned, and lessons learned.

Bodies on the grasslands, happy holidays turned into a bloodbath, women wailing for their men. It is a dark day in India, a timeless land where blood of innocents has been taken time and again, including the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai by those who would rather take lives than see peace. Tahawwur Rana a key accused in the Mumbai attacks was recently extradited to India.

Emotions will dissipate slowly, but India must not forget. Or forgive.