"No Local Involvement": Omar Abdullah On Arrest Of 2 Men Over Pahalgam Attack

Days after the National Investigation Agency or NIA arrested two locals for allegedly harbouring three Pakistani terrorists behind the massacre of 26 people in Pahalgam, J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah insisted there is no local involvement in the attack.

The Chief Minister maintained that the two locals arrested for harbouring attackers may well have done it under duress.

"There was no local involvement in the Pahalgam attack. The attackers were outsiders (Pakistanis). According to the NIA investigation, two locals have been arrested for assisting them, possibly by providing food, though coercion cannot be ruled out. Let the investigation proceed," said Mr Abdullah.

On Sunday, exactly two months after Pahalgam massacre, the NIA said two locals from Pahalgam have confessed to harbouring three terrorists. The two, NIA said, have also confirmed the identity of terrorists as Pakistani nationals.

But so far, the NIA or security forces have not been able to track the attackers, who killed innocent tourists for their religious identity and shot most of them from point blank range.

According to doctors, most the victims had bullet injuries in their upper bodies.

Mr Abdullah has often defended the central government over allegations of possible security lapse that led to killing of 26 people - all but one of them tourists -- on April 22 at Pahalgam's Baisaran valley.

The Central government is directly responsible for the police and law and order in the Union Territory. The Opposition has consistently been accusing the Union government of a major security lapse that led to the terror attack, and the subsequent failure to track down the attackers.

Soon after the attack, pictures of attackers surfaced and police have also announced a reward of Rs 60 lakh for anyone who provides a lead about these terrorists.

But despite a massive security operation in the forests of Pahalgam, the security forces are groping in dark.

No one has a clue about the heavily armed terrorists, who vanished in the thick alpine forests.

The perceived presence of terrorists in the area has posed a serious security challenge ahead of the upcoming annual Amarnath yatra, which starts on July 3.  

Hundreds of companies of security forces have been deployed in the area and the yatra track.