Operation Mahadev Ends with Elimination of Pahalgam Attackers, Shah Tells Parliament

Home Minister Amit Shah told Parliament that the three LeT terrorists behind the Pahalgam attack were killed in Operation Mahadev. Their identities and weapon links were confirmed through forensic tests and eyewitness accounts. Shah said the successful mission followed weeks of surveillance and cooperation between multiple security agencies.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah informed the Lok Sabha on Tuesday that the three Pakistani Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists responsible for the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack were neutralised during a joint security operation, codenamed ‘Operation Mahadev’. The mission, spanning over two months, culminated in Dachigam near Srinagar on Monday.

The terrorists—Suleiman, a known Lashkar commander, along with Afghan and Jibran—had killed 25 tourists and a local pony operator at Baisaran Valley. Shah confirmed their identities were verified by two local residents, Parvaiz and Bashir Jothar, who had allegedly harboured the militants before the attack.

Shah explained that Operation Mahadev began on May 22, following intelligence from the IB about the trio’s location in Dachigam. Indian forces intercepted their movements using surveillance of encrypted Chinese communication tools. After narrowing their position by July 22, elite units from the Army’s 4 Para, J&K Police, and CRPF launched a targeted assault.

On-site identification by human intelligence operatives, backed by forensic verification of recovered weapons—a carbine and two AK-47s—linked the militants conclusively to the Pahalgam massacre. Ballistic tests conducted at the Chandigarh Forensic Science Lab confirmed the match, with results delivered early Tuesday morning.

Additional evidence, including Pakistani voter ID cards and chocolate wrappers, further cemented the cross-border link. Shah noted that these attackers' commanders had already been neutralised earlier during Operation Sindoor, India’s wider counter-terror response that targeted nine terror camps in Pakistan and PoK in early May.

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Shah also shared that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) interrogated over 1,000 individuals across 3,000 hours to build the intelligence that led to the successful culmination of the mission. Parliament now awaits the Prime Minister’s remarks as Operation Sindoor remains at the centre of a national security debate.