NEW DELHI: With more than 125 terrorists still active in Kashmir—most of them infiltrators from across the border—Indian security agencies are racing to plug critical gaps exposed by recent attacks.
The agencies on Wednesday released photos and sketches of the terrorists involved in yesterday's attack in the Baisaran meadow of Pahalgam, in Kashmir. Of the four, two are believed to be the Pakistani terrorists who killed 26 people and injured several others, sources said.
The three terrorists identified as Asif Fuji, Suleman Shah, and Abu Talha are said to be members of The Resistance Front—an offshoot of the banned terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
Talking about their intentions, a source pointed out that "it seems to be to disrupt the normalcy and peace that has settled in since the abrogation of Article 370."
As seven lakh tourists visited Kashmir last year in addition to five lakh Amarnath devotees, the source noted that the scale of footfall underscores the return of peace in the region.
Confirming that there was no significant, specific, or actionable intelligence input, the source said, "except that terrorists are operating in the Anantnag area." There was no security at tourist locations, and electronic surveillance was also lacking, the source analyzed in hindsight.
Regarding the number of terrorists currently operating in Jammu and Kashmir, the source stated, "There are between 125 to 130 terrorists active in Kashmir, of which almost 115-120 are Pakistanis." Of these, between 75-80 are active in the Valley and the rest in Jammu.
According to sources, there has been a consistent decline in local recruitment: "2022 saw 121 recruited from Kashmir, which came down to 21 in 2023, and in 2024 it came to only six recruitments. This year, there has been no input of any recruitment," he added.
In 2024, 10 infiltration bids have been foiled, resulting in the deaths of 25 terrorists. A combined total of 144 terrorists have been eliminated over the past two years across both the Line of Control (LoC) and the hinterland.
This year, 10 terrorists have been killed—six at the LoC and four in the hinterland.
