Kin of Pahalgam victims welcome killing of terrorist Hashim Moosa

New Delhi, Sep 30 (IANS) Family members of victims of the Pahalgam terror attack on Wednesday welcomed the elimination of Pakistan-backed Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist Mohammad Asif alias Hashim Moosa, who was wanted for his role in the April 2025 attack and was killed by security forces in J&K's Budgam district.

The Chinar Corps of the Indian Army confirmed the killing of the Pakistan-linked terrorist.

In a post on X early on Wednesday, the Chinar Corps stated: “Further to the ongoing operation (‘Op Korag’), during the search early morning in the general area of Palmaidan, the body of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist Mohammad Asif alias Hashim Moosa was recovered along with war-like stores.”

It added that the operation was still underway.

Aishanya Dwivedi, wife of victim Shubham Dwivedi, described the operation as a significant achievement and praised the Indian Army’s efforts in tracking down the terrorists.

Speaking to IANS, she urged the security forces to take similar action against those allegedly sheltering terrorists in the country.

“If people within the country do not support them, situations like the one in Pahalgam would not arise,” she said.

Aishanya Dwivedi alleged that terrorists entering India from Pakistan and carrying out attacks indicated that they received support from individuals within the country.

Referring to Hashim Moosa, she questioned how he had managed to remain in India for so long and survive without local assistance.

“The Army should find out and eliminate such people too, who provide support to terrorists, because this is treason,” she said.

Asavari Jagdale, daughter of Pahalgam attack victim Santosh Jagdale, recalled that her father and one of his closest friends were killed in the attack.

She said the victims were allegedly asked about their religion before being shot and added that the incident would remain with the affected families throughout their lives.

“We will never be able to recover from this incident. It will never leave our minds and will stay with us for as long as we live,” she said.

However, Asavari Jagdale expressed happiness over the news of Hashim Moosa’s killing.

“Our Indian Army, intelligence agencies, NIA and all security agencies jointly handled the operation and eliminated him. I am extremely happy about this,” she told IANS.

She added that, on behalf of her family and all 26 affected families, she wanted to thank the security forces.

Asavari Jagdale also urged the continuation of such operations until all terrorists involved in such activities are eliminated.

Former Lieutenant General Sanjay Kulkarni said the families affected by the Pahalgam terror attack could finally breathe a sigh of relief knowing that all the terrorists involved in the attack had now been eliminated.

“This is a matter of great satisfaction,” he told IANS.

He added that one of Moosa’s associates had been killed about three weeks earlier.

Describing Pakistan as a “merchant of terror”, Sanjay Kulkarni said: “It is Pakistan that pushes terrorists into India in this manner.”

--IANS

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