DHAKA: At least seven pilgrims returning from the remote Himalayan shrine of Amarnath in Kashmir of India were shot dead and several wounded as militants fired on their bus, reports Hindustan Times quoting Indian police Monday (July 10).

All the victims were from Gujarat, the state chief minister Vijay Rupani told reporters, pointing to a possible targeted strike against a chartered bus from that state. Five of the dead were women.

The attack occurred at Batengoo at about 8.20pm (local time) when 60-70 pilgrims were returning from Baltal, one of the base camps of the pilgrimage, to Jammu. Batengoo is 65 km south of Srinagar.

Officials said the bus was neither registered with the Amarnath shrine board nor part of a convoy. It was moving after sunset, which is not allowed because of security restrictions.

India Prime Minister Narendra Modi condemned the attack as cowardly, saying “India will never get bogged down by such cowardly attacks and evil designs of hate”.

In a series of tweets, he also said: “The attack deserves strongest condemnation from everyone.”

Just weeks ago, Indian intelligence agencies had warned that militants were planning to target 100 policemen and as many Amarnath pilgrims to trigger communal violence, prompting the authorities to deploy more than 40,000 troops to protect the twin routes of the 40-day pilgrimage.

The Amarnath pilgrimage has come under attack by militants three times in the past, including the massacre of 30 people in Pahalgam on August 1, 2000. The government had held the Lashkar-e-Taiba responsible for that attack.

BDST: 0933 HRS, JUL 11, 2017
SI