Srinagar In a major breakthrough for Indian security forces, Suleman Shah, the mastermind of the Pahalgam terror attack and a wanted militant with a Rs 20 lakh bounty, has been killed in an encounter along with two of his associates in Jammu & Kashmir under ‘Operation Mahadev’.
While Parliament debated the ongoing ‘Operation Sindoor’, ground forces in the Lidwas region of Kashmir executed a high-stakes operation based on specific intelligence inputs.
Hours-Long Gunbattle Ends with Major Success
According to the Chinar Corps, the encounter began after forces launched a cordon-and-search operation in the Lidwas area, acting on intel about heavily armed militants in hiding. Upon being surrounded, the militants opened fire, triggering a prolonged and intense gunfight.
At the end of the operation, three terrorists were neutralized:
Suleman Shah – the Pahalgam attack mastermind
Abu Hamza
Yasir
All three had been on the radar of security agencies for a long time.Though the main encounter has concluded, search operations continue in the area to rule out the presence of any other hidden militants.
The elimination of Suleman Shah is being seen as both a strategic and psychological victory for Indian forces in the ongoing anti-terror operations across the Kashmir Valley.