Guess who's 'fully responsible' for Pahalgam?

It’s nearly three months since the Pahalgam terror attack of 22 April. Twenty-six tourists were murdered in cold blood. It was provocation enough for India to go to war with Pakistan, make red-faced threats about ‘new red lines’, send a delegation all over the world in the (dashed) hope of garnering international censure—and sanctions, if possible—against Pakistan. All this, but we still haven’t the faintest who the terrorists were.

Small mercy that someone in charge finally admitted to a security lapse: in an interview with the Times of India (published on 14 July), J&K Lieutenant Governor (LG) Manoj Sinha acknowledged a security failure and took “full responsibility”.

That Sinha was eliding the role of the Union ministry of home affairs, which plays a central role in overseeing security arrangements in J&K, was not lost on anyone. It is the MHA that is responsible for formulating security policies in J&K. It is the MHA that coordinates deployments of the CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force) and BSF (Border Security Force), and J&K Police and the Indian Army to maintain law and order in J&K, a Union Territory since August 2019.

It is the MHA that directs counter-terrorism operations and manages intelligence coordination through agencies like the NIA (National Investigation Agency). Its oversight extends to issuing guidelines for internal security, border management and handling all issues related to cross-border terrorism—especially, in the sensitive region of J&K—and yet, to again quote Sinha: “I take full responsibility for the incident, which was undoubtedly a security failure.” Who isn’t taking the blame here?

One of the defining images of the 22 April terrorist attack in Baisaran Valley, Pahalgam

It’s worth noting that Baisaran meadow, where the terrorists struck, is an isolated area, about 7 km from the town of Pahalgam. It’s accessible only on foot or horseback. Despite Pahalgam’s strategic importance—given its proximity to the Amarnath cave and as base camp for the Amarnath Yatra pilgrimage—there was no security deployment at Baisaran when the terrorists struck. Pahalgam, incidentally, has a three-tier security arrangement, consisting of the J&K Police, Rashtriya Rifles and CRPF.

The meadow had no security deployment, no surveillance cameras installed, making it an easy target for terrorists, who clearly exploited the vulnerability. They spent nearly half an hour in the meadow, unhurriedly picking their targets, before finally disappearing into the dense forest nearby.

According to some media reports, not refuted by officials, Baisaran was opened to tourists two months earlier than usual—on 20 April, just two days before the attack. It reportedly opened without obtaining a clearance from security agencies.

It took security personnel over an hour to reach the spot and the evacuation of the dead and the injured was reportedly slow. Some fatalities occurred due to heavy blood loss, and reports said a few of the deceased might have been saved if they received immediate medical attention.

Two days after the attack, J&K Police released sketches of three suspects. On the same day (24 April), security agencies went on a demolition drive, razing the family homes of at least 10 local militants, including one whose sketch had been released. More than two months later, the NIA concluded that all three attackers were Pakistani nationals, not the individuals depicted in the police sketches.

The investigative agencies still don’t know—or haven’t confirmed—if the attackers are still in the valley or have gone back to Pakistan, where they allegedly came from. It’s worth noting that the nearest border point between Pahalgam and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) is in Poonch, approximately 175 kilometres away by road. A journey on foot through the dense forests between Pahalgam and Poonch is estimated to take over a week. Which begs the question: how and where did the terrorists disappear after the strike?

Nearly three months after the attack, the investigation seems to have gone nowhere. The NIA’s arrest of two local Kashmiris—Parvaiz Ahmad Jothar and Bashir Ahmad Jothar—for allegedly sheltering the attackers falls way short of meeting public expectations of swift justice.