Nihal Mohammed, 24, from Kozhikode, never imagined that the video he filmed on his mobile phone during a family vacation would serve as critical evidence in the Pahalgam terror attack.
Nihal was recording a clip of his cousin sister ziplining when terrorists opened fire on tourists. The chilling footage turned out to be a vital piece of evidence in the investigation.
Nihal and his relatives had travelled to Kashmir for a vacation. On arriving at Baisaran, Nihal’s cousin went for ziplining. “Suddenly, a sound was heard, though no one initially realised it was a gunshot,” he said. Nihal told a television channel from Kashmir that it was when the second gunshot rang out that the reality hit him that what was unfolding in front of his eyes was a terror attack.
“My cousin, who was on the zipline, and her mother saw the militant, who was wearing a white tee,” he said. Nihal described seeing a woman lying on the ground as gunshots rang out. Despite the initial confusion, the group quickly sought shelter under a tree, and the terrorists retreated into the surrounding pine forest. “Chaos followed, shattering the peace that had enveloped the meadow,” said Nihal, who is pursuing a company secretary course.
The funeral of N. Ramachandran from Kochi, who was killed in front of his daughter, Aarathi R. Menon, will be organised on Friday.
Aarathi, in her 30s, recounted: “We saw tourists ziplining and bungee jumping. We didn’t realise it was a gunshot when we heard a distant sound. The next gunshot was clearer. I realised it was a terror attack and asked my father to lie down. A terrorist approached us and shot my father at point-blank range. He died instantly.”
Visa service to Pakistan cancelled
All existing valid visas issued by India to Pakistanis will be revoked from April 27. Even the medical visas issued to Pakistani nationals will be valid only till April 29.
These visa-related decisions are in addition to Wednesday’s move to cancel the Saarc Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) visas issued to Pakistani nationals. Those in India on SVES visas were given 48 hours to leave.
In an advisory to Indians, the external affairs ministry said they are strongly advised to avoid travelling to Pakistan. Those Indian nationals currently in Pakistan were advised to return to India at the earliest.