Several Chief Minister and political figures on Wednesday condemned the Pahalgam terror attack and expressed condolences to the families of the deceased.
Assam government is making all arrangements to bring back a survivor family of the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, the Chief Minister’s Office(CMO)said.
“The@CMOfficeAssam has spoken to a survivor from Assam of the dastardly #PahalgamTerrorAttack and has taken a full brief of the incident which they have faced yesterday,” the CMO said in a social media post.
“The entire family’s return to the State is being arranged on priority and the Government of Assam is in touch with the Govt of India to bring the family back to Assam at the earliest,” it added.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the images of coffins are heartbreaking and have shaken the nation’s conscience.
“The people of Assam join Adarniya @AmitShah ji in offering our prayers for the departed. This nefarious attack will be avenged and the perpetrators will not be spared... India will never forget and never forgive!” he said in a series of posts. Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini said those responsible for the “cowardly” attack on tourists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam will not be spared.
“We strongly condemn the cowardly and planned attack on tourists... Those who have committed this act will not be spared, and strict action will be taken against them,” Saini told reporters in Gurugram, asserting that the Centre’s resolve to fight against terror is firm.
Among those killed in the attack was 26-year-old Indian Navy officer Lieutenant Vinay Narwal, a resident of Haryana’s Karnal, who was holidaying with his wife in Pahalgam. Narwal got married recently.
On Wednesday, Saini made a video call to Narwal’s grandfather, who sought from Prime Minister Narendra Modi exemplary punishment for the perpetrators and firm action to weed out terrorism. “Today, I have lost my grandson, tomorrow it can be someone else,” he said while speaking to chief minister Saini.
Haryana Assembly Speaker Harvinder Kalyan, who is a BJP MLA from Gharaunda in Karnal district, also reached Karnal city to be with the bereaved family. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee confirmed that three persons from the state were killed in the terror attack.
Describing it to be a “grim hour” for the state, Banerjee said her government was making all the arrangements to get family members of the victims back home from New Delhi and she was personally overseeing it. “As per the latest updated information made available to us, three persons from our state have died in the most unfortunate Kashmir violence,” Banerjee said in a social media post.
The three deceased are Bitan Adhikari of Baishnabghata in Kolkata, Samir Guha of Sakher Bazar in Kolkata and Manish Ranjan of Jhalda in Purulia district.
“All arrangements are being put up by our administration at Delhi Airport to help the family members of the victims and their onward journey to Kolkata. Flight is likely to arrive in Kolkata at 8.30 pm today,” she said. The resident commissioner’s office in Delhi is in touch with the family members, the chief minister said.
Extending her condolences to the families of those killed in the attack, Banerjee said that her government is standing by them in the crisis. “A grim hour for all of us,” she said. A two-minute silence was observed on Wednesday at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami in Dehradun to pay tribute to the victims of the terror attack at Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir.
The meeting chaired by Dhami and attended by senior officials, including Garhwal Commissioner Vinay Shankar Pandey, Secretary to CM Shailesh Baghauli and Secretary (housing and energy) R Meenakshi Sundaram was held at the the chief minister’s official residence.
Conveying his deep condolences to the families that lost their loved ones in the attack, Dhami said, “My deep condolences to the bereaved families on behalf of the people of Uttarakhand. This cowardly attack is not only an attack on innocent people but also on the culture, peace and values of humanity of our country. “
“The attempts by terrorists to disturb Jammu and Kashmir will never succeed. A befitting reply will be given to this misdeed and the culprits will not be spared,” he said. Union Minister G Kishan Reddy and several other BJP leaders and activists on Wednesday held a protest in Hyderabad against the Pahalgam terror attack, raising slogans calling for an attack against Pakistan.
Kishan Reddy, who wore a black dress as an expression of protest, said those responsible for the attack will not be spared. The government would take a decision to act against the terrorists, he said.
Terming the attack as a “cowardly act” in a statement issued in Shimla, Himachal Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said such incidents were not acceptable in a civilised society and anti-social elements must be curbed at all costs.
Former Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jai Ram Thakur also condemned the terror attack and said “such cruelty” cannot be tolerated in a civilised society.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said the TDP-led NDA government extends its solidarity with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the union government in the backdrop of the terror attack.
The chief minister underscored that the state government extends its support to Modi and the Centre in their commitment to safeguard India’s sovereignty and responding to terrorism with “firm and decisive action”.
Further, he mourned the death of JC Chandra Mouli and Madhusudhan in the attack, who were of Telugu origin.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with their families during this time of profound grief, and I pray they find the strength to endure this immense loss,” added Naidu, who is scheduled to receive Mouli’s body in Vizag later on Wednesday.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav described the terror attack as “very painful” and termed the killing of tourists as “unthinkable”.
He said, “One of the deceased happens to be from Bihar, but posted in Hyderabad. We offer condolences to all bereaved family members.”
The reference was to Manish Ranjan, an Intelligence Bureau official, whose father had migrated to West Bengal long ago.
Ranjan’s wife and children, who were accompanying him at the tourist spot in Jammu and Kashmir, survived the attack.
Arunachal Pradesh Governor Lt General K T Parnaik (retired) termed the killing of innocent people as a “barbaric act of cowardice,” and said such attacks are a direct assault on the composite and inclusive fabric of India, which binds the nation in unity and diversity.
On Corporal Tage Hailyang of the Indian Air Force, an Arunachal Pradesh resident who lost his life in the attack, Parnaik said the entire state stands united in mourning this irreparable loss, a Raj Bhavan statement said here.
Parnaik, who served in Jammu and Kashmir including as the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Northern Command, also wished a speedy and full recovery to those injured in the attack.
AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi alleged the Pahalgam terror attack was the result of an intelligence failure. He demanded the Narendra Modi government to fix accountability over the incident saying the attack is more dangerous, condemnable and painful than the similar incidents in Uri and Pulwama.
Condemning the incident, officiating Jathedar of the Akal Takht, Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargajj, said it has deeply pained him and reminded him of the March 2000 massacre in Chittisinghpura, Kashmir, in which 35 Sikhs were killed.
Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla and senior BJP MLA Govindas Konthoujam also condemned the “senseless act of violence”.