NIA takes over Pahalgam terror attack probe

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has initiated the process to take over the probe into the Pahalgam terror attack that left 26 people dead on Tuesday. Acting on orders from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), NIA teams have been stationed at the attack site since Wednesday, intensifying the search for evidence.

Supervised by senior officials — an Inspector General (IG), a Deputy Inspector General (DIG), and a Superintendent of Police (SP) — the teams are meticulously examining eyewitness accounts from the Baisaran valley, where the attack unfolded. Entry and exit points are being closely scrutinised to piece together the terrorists' modus operandi, while forensic experts assist in combing the area for crucial evidence, a statement from the probe agency reads.

In the deadliest terror strike since Pulwama in 2019, terrorists opened fire at a meadow near Pahalgam, a popular tourist town in south Kashmir's Anantnag district, killing 25 tourists and a local guide, and injuring several others. The Resistance Front (TRF), a proxy of the banned Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), claimed responsibility for the attack.

The massacre has escalated tensions between India and Pakistan. Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed that the perpetrators would be pursued "to the ends of the earth." In a strong retaliatory move, the Centre suspended the 1960 Indus Water Treaty, shut down the Attari border checkpost, and downgraded bilateral ties. Security forces, meanwhile, have intensified operations in Jammu and Kashmir, demolishing the homes of nine identified terrorists.