Real tribute, justice to those killed in Pahalgam attack, say families of victims

“We were eagerly waiting for this day,” said Harshal Lele, son of Sanjay Lele, one of the 26 Indian and Nepali civilians, mostly tourists, who were killed in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on April 22 by what India claimed were Pakistan-backed terrorists. “I couldn’t sleep yesterday after getting to know that the Indian armed forces had attacked terror camps and kept on watching live feeds of the action on news channels,” he added.

Lele said that he and others in his family knew that it was just a matter of time before the Indian government took some action against the terrorists. “We felt a sense of peace and justice, but this was just one strike. India must continue such operations until terrorism is completely eradicated,” he said, while remembering how armed terrorists brutally killed tourists in Pahalgam, showing no mercy.

Hemant Joshi and Atul Mone, the two other Dombivli residents killed in the terror attack, were also Sanjay Lele’s relatives. Their family members said that the military strike by the Indian armed forces brought a sense of closure to them and offered true homage to their deceased loved ones.