Srinagar: A little away, as terrorists opened fire in Baisaran valley, 26-year-old Asavari Jagdale and four others from her family huddled inside a tent, praying for their lives, absolutely clueless about what was coming at them. Little did they know that their vacay to experience the serenity of Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam would turn into a nightmare, or rather something worse than that.
"They asked my father (Santosh Jagdale) to come out and recite an Islamic verse. When he could not, they shot him thrice - once in the head, once behind the ear, and then in the back," Asavari, a Pune-based HR professional, told PTI, just hours after encountering the horror in Pahalgam.
As if everything was still unfolding in front of her eyes, her voice choked as she recounted the petrifying experience.
Asavari and her family members were on vacation to Kashmir. On Tuesday, when they visited the Baisaran Valley, popular as the 'Mini Switzerland', suddenly terrorists dressed like local police came out of the blue at around 3 PM and opened fire on the tourists.
"We were five including my parents. When firing began, we were at this place called Mini Switzerland. We immediately ran into a tent to hide. There were 6-7 other tourists with us. Initially, we thought it was a crossfire between terrorists and security forces, so we all lay flat on the ground. But soon, the terrorists approached our tent. They said 'Chaudhari, tu bahar aa ja,' and then they blamed us for supporting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and claimed they don't kill innocents. Still, they asked my father to recite an Islamic verse, probably a Kalma. When he failed, they shot him thrice," recalled Asavari.
After her father fell to the ground, the gunmen then turned on to her uncle who was lying next to her and shot him several times in the back. "They fired 4-5 at him. Then they turned their guns towards other men nearby. There was no one to help. Forces arrived almost 20 minutes after the incident," she said to PTI.
While Asavari, her mother, and another female relative were spared by the gunmen, the local pony handlers who had accompanied them to the valley helped the three women trek back to safety. As part of the procedure, the survivors were medically examined and later shifted to Pahalgam Club.
While she said she had no information about her father and uncle's condition, Maharashtra government later confirmed that the deceased include Santosh Jagdale and Kaustubh Ganbote of Pune, and four more from the state. The Fadnavis government has also requested the aviation minister to arrange a special flight to help the persons stranded in Jammu & Kashmir get back to Maharashtra. "During the telephonic conversation, Deputy CM Eknath Shinde requested minister Ram Mohan Naidu to arrange a special flight to bring back the tourists who are stranded in J&K. Accepting the request, Naidu assured that once a list of the stranded tourists is provided, arrangements will be made to bring them to Mumbai via a special flight," stated DCMO.
As per reports, at least 28 people, mostly tourists, have been killed in what is being described as one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in Kashmir in recent years, after the 2019 Pulwana tragedy. Sources said, several other tourists have been injured and are undergoing treatment at various hospitals.
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