Seven people were killed and 21 injured on July 10 when terrorists attacked a bus returning from the Amarnath Yatra.
The Amarnath bus that was attacked left the security convoy on the way back from Baltal after visiting the shrine and went to Srinagar for two days, undetected by authorities, exposing gaps in the security mechanism.
The initial investigations have also revealed that a group of four terrorists that included two local recruits of Lashkar-e-Taiba led by Abu Ismail carried out the attack. Sources said the attack was planned at a short notice when the bus halted for an hour due to a flat tyre and a mechanical snag.
The bus carrying pilgrims from Gujarat was registered for the Yatra in Jammu on July 7 and was part of the security convoy reaching the shrine the next day.
On the way back, the bus left the security convoy and the pilgrims decided to leave for Srinagar on July 8. They left from there on July 10 at around 4.30 pm, but had to stop as the bus broke down.
“This was when the word spread that there was a Yatra bus and terrorists targeted it at Batingu, around 12 kms from the point of breakdown,” said home ministry officials giving details of a report sent from the Jammu and Kashmir police.
Two Central ministers - Jitendra Singh and Hansraj Ahir, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat, and CRPF DGP RR Bhatnagar rushed to Kashmir after the attack to review the situation.
The ministers visited Srinagar, following a directive from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
They discussed the security situation in detail with the chief minister and the governor, before holding an in-depth security review with the local army commander, the chief secretary, the police chief and senior officers of the state government, the DG of the CRPF, and senior officers of BSF and other security agencies, a home ministry statement said.
In their interaction, the ministers stressed that the entire country was with the Kashmiris and the pilgrims and that all measures to secure the pilgrimage would continue.
Security forces have been told to enhance anti-terror operations based on specific inputs. The forces managed to kill three terrorists after an all-night encounter in Budgam in Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday morning.
A district-wise list of active terrorists has been prepared segregating local and Pakistani terrorists, putting the total number to 258. Out of these, 130 are locals and 128 Pakistanis. Shopian, Kulgam, Pulwama, Awantipora and Anantnag are the districts where locals outnumber Pakistani terrorists and are heading terror cells.
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