Srinagar: In a major breakthrough, the Jammu and Kashmir Police have arrested a man on charges of providing logistical support to the Pakistani terrorists who carried out the April 22 Pahalgam massacre, killing 26 innocents, mostly tourists from across the country.
According to an official, the arrest of Mohammad Kataria was facilitated by the forensic analysis of weapons and equipment recovered during July’s Operation Mahadev, during which the three terrorists who carried out the attack were neutralised by security forces.
“This highlights the government’s effort to track down all of those involved in the gruesome mass murder. A search is on for others. Nobody will be spared,” the official said.
Operation Mahadev was not a one day operation. It unfolded over weeks starting May 22, when security forces received intel about terrorists hiding in Dachigam near Srinagar. After weeks of observation – during which time the military intercepted encrypted comms on China-origin devices – the assault began July 28.
According to officials, the final assault began soon after the terrorists fired up the T82 comms device, allowing the Indian forces to pinpoint their location.
At 8 am a drone was launched for visual confirmation of the terrorists. At 9.30 am the Rashtriya Rifles – the Army’s counter-insurgency force in J&K – and Special Forces personnel had reached the area and within 30 minutes, a secondary visual confirmation was made.
At 11 am, shots were fired. At 11.45 am, one injured terrorist was killed trying to escape. By 12.45 pm, all three had been eliminated, and their bodies located and identified, including Suleiman Shah, alias Hashim Musa, the mastermind of the Pahalgam attack.
Shah was a former commando in the Pakistan Army’s elite Special Service Group. He later joined UN-designated terrorist Hafiz Saeed’s Lashkar-e-Taiba to carry out terror activities, source said.
He first infiltrated India in September 2023. In October 2024 he led an attack that killed seven civilians. He was also involved in an attack in Baramulla that killed four security personnel.
The visuals showed multiple guns, including AK-47 and M9 assault rifles. These and other weapons and equipment were what helped J&K Police track down and apprehend Mohd Kataria.
The weapons had been sent to a lab in Chandigarh for processing that confirmed also the guns had been used in the Pahalgam attack. Union home minister Amit Shah told Parliament, “We generated empty bullet shells by firing these rifles and matched them to those found in Pahalgam. It was confirmed that these rifles were used to murder innocent civilians,” he had said.