The defence ministry on Monday rejected media reports claiming the identities and background of the three slain foreign terrorists killed in ‘Operation Mahadev,’ who were involved in the Pahalgam attack. The ministry has clarified that it did not issue any such document or remark, which confirmed that the Army had found evidence, including biometric and documentary proof, proving the terrorists’ background.
An official statement issued by the Defence Ministry said: “A report on identities and background of the Pahalgam attackers is being circulated through media/social media handles and attributed to the Services. No authorised media handle of the Indian Armed Forces has prepared or issued any such document.”
“Neither have any remarks of this nature been made by the Armed Forces Public Relations Offices/nominated spokespersons. The report appears to be a compilation of information on post-encounter findings, collated from open sources,” the ministry clarified.
The Headquarters of the Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) also took to X to dismiss claims circulating online regarding the terrorists’ identities.
“Social media accounts are spreading a Report on the Identities and Background of the Pahalgam Attackers. No authorised media handle of the Armed Forces has prepared or issued any such document. No remarks of this nature have been made by the Armed Forces Public Relations Offices / nominated Spokespersons,” the post read.
Earlier on Monday, security officials cited evidence from ‘Operation Mahadev’ carried out on July 28 to confirm to news agency PTI that the three slain terrorists were Pakistani nationals and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operatives.
The official said that the roots of the terrorists were traced to Pakistan based on the evidence, including biometric verification with Pakistan’s National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), voter ID documents, digital satellite phone logs, and GPS data, collected after the operation, reported PTI.
“For the first time, we have government-issued Pakistani documents that prove the nationality of the Pahalgam attackers beyond doubt,” PTI quoted a senior official as saying.
The report said that documents found included two laminated voter slips from the Election Commission of Pakistan, which were recovered from two of the bodies. One slip was traced to Lahore (NA-125), the other to Gujranwala (NA-79).
Wrappers of ‘CandyLand’ and ‘ChocoMax’ chocolates, both Pakistani brands, were also found from the terrorists, the officials said, adding that lot numbers printed on them traced to a consignment shipped to Muzaffarabad, PoK, in May 2024.
However, the defence ministry’s statement implies that the findings were not released by any official communication channel.
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