Pahalgam terror attack: Five questions that must be asked

The massacre of 26 people on April 22, 2025, by Pakistan-sponsored Islamist terrorists at the Baisaran meadow in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam has shaken India’s soul. It is the most horrifying terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) since the 2019 Pulwama attack in which 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were killed.

The killing of civilians – 25 Hindus and one Muslim – was carried out by The Resistance Front (TRF), a proxy of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which has been spearheading terror activities in J&K since 2019. Though the group later backtracked on the responsibility for the attack, it appears more as an escape from the aftermath. Also, 17 people were injured in the attack.

In the wake of the Pahalgam attack, India has initiated diplomatic retaliation against Pakistan, including suspension of the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty. While counter-terror operations in J&K continue, here are the five questions that must be asked.

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First, how was such a ghastly attack at a popular tourist spot executed by terrorists without intelligence agencies getting a whiff of it?

The attack in Pahalgam would have required meticulous planning, including logistics and reconnaissance. Given that the two terrorists (out of four involved in the incident) reportedly are Pakistani, they must have infiltrated J&K months ago and remained hidden for quite some time. It poses a question mark on the effectiveness of the Unified Command, the apex decision-making body responsible for the overall security of J&K. It has to be investigated how and when infiltration took place when at the same time the Indian government claims that infiltration is at its lowest levels in recent years. Moreover, the lack of security at the meadow is baffling.

Second, how is Pakistan able to successfully execute terrorist attacks in J&K? If the people of Kashmir have no love lost for Pakistan or Islamist terrorism, why do such incidents keep happening?

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The unstated fact is that Pakistan sponsoring terrorism in J&K is just half the story. The other half is about support from certain sections of the Muslim populace in J&K, which is delineated through “Pakistan se rishta kya, La ilaha illa Allah”. It has been established a gazillion times that many Kashmiri Muslims have been directly involved in insurgency and terrorism since 1989, either as terrorists or overground workers. In the case of the Pahalgam attack, two Kashmiri Muslims are directly involved as terrorists. Additionally, the authorities have identified 15 Kashmiri Muslims who facilitated the attack in Pahalgam. As per reports, over 200 overground workers have been detained since the incident.

Third, why is Islamic radicalisation in Kashmiri society swept under the carpet?

Islamic radicalisation has permeated society over the last several decades, resulting in the othering of non-Muslims (Hindus) time and again. There are concerted efforts to show Kashmir as a pluralistic society even when the facts tell us otherwise (the ethnic cleansing and forced displacement of Kashmiri Pandits in 1989-90). There are numerous examples of anti-Hindu hatred prevalent in Kashmir.

Two examples from the year 2024 come to mind: A Muslim kid made a video in which he objected to Diwali celebrations in Srinagar by saying that Kashmir isn’t progressing because of such acts; a Muslim man told a YouTuber that a temple, if constructed in his village, will be burnt to the ground. Later, the kid apologised for his awful remarks in another video. In the second instance, many Muslims went after the YouTuber by saying that she was trying to vitiate the environment in Kashmir instead of taking cognisance of the anti-Hindu hatred. Importantly, if there is a public backlash, especially on social media, we are often told that individuals offering such toxic takes are either ‘misguided’ or ‘mentally unstable’.

Fourth, why is Islamist terrorism not called out in the strongest possible terms?

Saying that terrorism has no religion essentially obscures the problem, even when Hindus are clearly targeted for their faith — be it 1989-90 or 2020-25. Terrorists confirmed the Hindu identity of people before killing them in Pahalgam. Quick condemnation of terrorist attacks — without calling out Islamist terrorism – is the forte of Kashmiri politicians as well as the society at large. It is the reason why jihad continues unabated in J&K.

Is communal harmony strengthened by building ‘Kashmiriyat’ over the dead bodies of Hindus? Don’t forget that a Hindu is killed by Islamist terrorists primarily because of his/her faith, whereas the killing of a Muslim isn’t because he/she is a Muslim. Therein lies the crux of Islamist terrorism.

Fifth, is there normalcy in Kashmir when terrorist incidents are happening sporadically?

The absence of street violence and booming tourism in Kashmir do not imply the diminution of terrorism in Kashmir. The terrorist attacks on minority Hindus and migrant workers in Kashmir in the recent past were factored out to claim normalcy. Terrorist attacks in Jammu (one of them was in Rajouri’s Dhangri village in January 2023, in which seven Hindus were killed) didn’t figure in the definition either. Remember the killing of Satpal Nischal, a jeweller in Srinagar’s Hari Singh High Street, by terrorists on December 31, 2020?

The uncomfortable questions must be asked and discussed at societal and political levels within and outside J&K. It is in asking blunt questions we will find answers and course-correct, which is absolutely essential for J&K. After all, terrorism in J&K has ruined thousands of families — Hindus and Muslims alike — over the Islamist idea of ‘azadi’.

If there is one lesson from the horrific massacre in Pahalgam, it should be calling out and acting against Islamist terrorism along with its varied manifestations without any compromises. The more there is any compromise with Islamist terrorism, the more it will come back to bite us.

The author is a writer and political commentator. He is the co-editor of a book on Kashmir’s ethnic minority community titled ‘A Long Dream of Home: The Persecution, Exodus and Exile of Kashmiri Pandits’. He tweets @VaradSharma. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views.