Pahalgam attack: NIA gets custody of two accused for 10 more days

A special court in Jammu on Monday granted the National Investigation Agency (NIA) 10 more days’ remand of the two accused arrested for allegedly harbouring Pakistani terrorists involved in the deadly Pahalgam terror attack in April, officials said.

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After the expiry of the earlier 10-day remand, Parvaiz Ahmad Jothar and Bashir Ahmad Jothar were produced before the Special NIA Court, which extended their remand to enable the NIA to carry out its investigation in the case, the officials said.

The two were arrested on June 22 and were presented in a local court in Jammu the next day. The court initially granted the NIA five days’ remand before the case was shifted to the special court.

According to the NIA, the accused disclosed the identities of the three armed terrorists involved in the attack and confirmed that they were Pakistani nationals affiliated with the banned terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

The federal agency alleged that Parvaiz and Bashir had knowingly harboured the terrorists at a seasonal ‘dhok’ (hut) in Hill Park in Pahalgam before the April 22 attack that left 26 people, mostly tourists, dead and 16 others injured.

The two provided food, shelter and logistical support to the terrorists, who, on the fateful afternoon, selectively targeted and killed tourists based on their religious identity, making it one of the most gruesome terrorist attacks in recent memory, the NIA said, as it continues its probe into the terror network behind the massacre in Kashmir’s tourism hub.