Trousers of 20 of 26 killed in Pahalgam terror attack were pulled down, unzipped: Officials

In a disturbing detail emerging from the initial examination of the 26 victims of the Pahalgam terror attack, officials discovered that the trousers of around 20 male victims were either unzipped or pulled down—an apparent attempt by the terrorists to determine their religion before executing them, The Times of India reported.

The joint team comprising Army personnel, Jammu and Kashmir Police, and local administration officials believes this was done to identify the victims’ faith before carrying out the targeted killings.

Families of the deceased, likely in deep shock, did not notice the condition of the bodies, which had been covered with shrouds by the personnel who retrieved them.

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The terrorists had also checked the identity cards of the tourists and made them recite an Islamic verse, the Kalma. Those who failed to do so—indicating they were not Muslims—were shot dead.

The team of officers tasked with closely examining the bodies to document details for the FIR noted signs of this brutal religious profiling, including the pulling down of lower garments to check for circumcision.

Eyewitness accounts have corroborated these findings, confirming that the terrorists responsible for the Pahalgam massacre verified the religious identity of victims before executing them. Survivors said the assailants demanded identity documents such as Aadhaar cards and driving licences, ordered the victims to recite the Kalma (an Islamic declaration of faith), and even forced them to remove their lower garments to check for circumcision—a practice commonly associated with Muslim men.

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Once the attackers confirmed the Hindu identity of their victims through these three ‘tests,’ they shot them at close range. Of the 26 people killed in the Tuesday attack, 25 were identified as Hindus—all of them male.

Meanwhile, the investigation into the massacre has gathered pace. Sources in the security establishment said nearly 70 overground workers (OGWs) and known terror sympathisers from areas including Tral, Pulwama, Anantnag, and Kulgam are currently being interrogated by a joint team comprising officials from the Jammu and Kashmir Police, the Intelligence Bureau (IB), and the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).

“Initially, around 1,500 OGWs were rounded up for questioning. This list has now been narrowed down to 70 individuals who are strongly suspected of having provided logistical support to the Pahalgam attack team,” a senior J&K administration officer said. “We are confident of further narrowing the search and identifying the masterminds soon.”