Says A-grade Lashkar terrorists Suleman, Afghan, Jibran had Pak IDs, rifles matched in Chandigarh lab, confirming Pahalgam, Gagangeer links; denies Modi-Trump tete-a-tete in ceasefire talks
New Delhi: Amid the ongoing debate on Operation Sindoor, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday told the Lok Sabha that all three terrorists involved in the Pahalgam attack were killed in a joint operation by the Indian Army, CRPF, and Jammu & Kashmir Police on July 28 in the Srinagar forests, marking a major success both in cross-border retaliation and in counter-terror operations within the valley.
The operation, named Mahadev, neutralised Suleman alias Faizal, Afghan, and Jibran—all described as A-category militants of the Lashkar-e-Taiba.
“In a joint Operation Mahadev, the Indian Army, CRPF and J&K Police have neutralised three terrorists who were involved in the Pahalgam terror attack,” Shah told Parliament, as reported by the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO).
He said the bodies of the three terrorists were brought to Srinagar, where they were identified by individuals who had been detained earlier. These individuals, according to Shah, were those who had supplied food and shelter to the attackers.
“All three terrorists—Suleman, Afghan and Jibran—were killed in yesterday’s operation. The people who used to supply food to them were detained earlier. Once the bodies were brought to Srinagar, they were identified by those detained by our agencies,” he said.
The Home Minister added that Suleman was an A-category commander of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, while Afghan and Jibran were also listed as A-grade terrorists by the security agencies.
He mentioned that the terrorists had Pakistani voter ID numbers and that Pakistan-made chocolates were recovered from them
On forensic confirmation, Shah said rifles seized from the site matched those used in the Pahalgam attack. “Three rifles were seized from the terrorists. The ballistic report is in my hand, and it has been confirmed by six experts that these were the same rifles used to attack our citizens,” he said. The weapons recovered included two AK-47 rifles and one M-9 carbine.
The HM said forensic testing of cartridges had already been conducted before the operation, and after the seizure of weapons, further tests were carried out in Chandigarh to confirm the link.
He referred to the arrest of those who provided shelter to the attackers. “The NIA had already arrested those who gave them shelter. Those who fed them were detained,” he said.
Recounting his meeting with families affected by the Pahalgam attack, Shah said, “I met the affected families. I saw standing before me a woman who had been widowed just six days after her wedding. I can never forget that scene.”
He added, “Modi ji neutralised those who sent the terrorists, and our security forces killed those who committed the killings.”
Referring to Operation Sindoor, the Home Minister said the Cabinet Committee on Security met on April 30, following which the operation was launched on May 7 between 1:04 am and 1:24 am. “Nine terror sites in Pakistan were destroyed. No Pakistani civilians were killed,” he said.
On May 9, Shah said, 11 of Pakistan’s air bases were targeted, and eight were hit in a way that disrupted the country’s air defence systems. “Our job was completed at 1:26 am on May 7. This is not Manmohan Singh’s government. We will not sit quietly and send dossiers,” he said.
Speaking on the ceasefire between India and Pakistan, Amit Shah told Parliament that six of Pakistan’s radar systems were destroyed during the Indian operation. “While Pakistan targeted residential areas, India refrained from retaliating in kind and instead focused solely on military targets,” he said.
“We only attacked their air bases and ruined their attacking capabilities. Our armed forces were intact, and their attacking capacities were destroyed,” he said.
Shah added that, facing significant losses, Pakistan had no choice but to call for a ceasefire. “On May 10, the Pakistani DGMO called our DGMO, and we paused the conflict at 5 pm without any third-party mediation,” he said.
He also commented on the historical context of Pakistan, saying, “Pakistan is Congress’s mistake. If they had not accepted partition, there would have been no Pakistan today.”—(KNO)
