Srinagar: Under Operation Mahadev, the Army claimed to have killed three terrorists on Monday after an intense gunfight in the Dachigam forest area, located on the outskirts of Srinagar.
The operation, codenamed ‘Operation Mahadev’, was launched early in the morning after receiving intelligence about the presence of terrorists in Lidwas meadow, a high-altitude area in Dachigam National Park, Harwan, army sources said.
According to the Army’s Chinar Corps, the encounter turned intense, resulting in the killing of three heavily armed terrorists.
“OP MAHADEV Update: Three terrorists have been neutralised in an intense firefight. Operation continues,” the Army posted on social media platform X.
Though officially the identities of the killed terrorists are yet to be ascertained, some sources within the security establishment said that one of the killed terrorists could be Suleman Musa, a Pakistani terrorist believed to be behind the deadly Pahalgam attack on April 22, in which 25 tourists and a pony handler were killed.
Northern Army Commander Lt Gen Pratik Sharma praised the Army and police for the swift and precise action. The operation is still ongoing in the forested terrain.
Some sources said that Sulieman alias Asif, who is believed to be the mastermind of the April 22 attack, was killed after the security forces launched a surprise action, codenamed ‘Operation Mahadev’, following a technical signal indicating use of a satellite phone that was used by the perpetrators of the Pahalgam attack.
The PTI reported that the other terrorists killed in the action have been identified as Jibran — who was allegedly involved in the Sonamarg Tunnel attack last year — and Hamza Afghani, however, there is no official confirmation.
Additional reinforcements of the Army and other security forces have been rushed as intelligence inputs suggested the presence of another group of terrorists in the area, PTI reported officials saying.
The bodies of the slain terrorists have been handed over to local police, which helped in the identification process, for carrying out legal formalities and final rites as per the standard operating procedure.
The officials said that at around 1130 hours, one party comprising personnel from 24 Rashtriya Rifles and 4 Para unit had detected the group of three terrorists.
Inspector General of Police (Kashmir Zone) V K Birdi said it was a long-drawn operation which was going on till the last reports.
Earlier, the Srinagar-based Chinar Corps in a post on X said three terrorists were killed under Operation Mahadev. “Three terrorists have been neutralised in an intense firefight. Operation Continues,” the Chinar Corps of the Army said.
