Almost a week has passed since the cowardly and barbaric terrorist attack in the Baisaran Valley of the picturesque Pahalgam resort in South Kashmir's Anantnag district. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has now taken over the investigation into this attack, which killed 26 unarmed innocent people — all of them, except one, were tourists.
As the investigation progresses, revelations are being made one after another. A new angle has emerged in the Pahalgam attack involving a satellite phone manufactured by the Chinese company, Huawei.
According to reports, security agencies have confirmed the movement of a Huawei satellite phone in the same area and during the same time on the day of the Pahalgam terror attack, April 22.
Huawei is a Chinese company whose products are banned across the country. Some reports suggest that Huawei satellite phones may have been smuggled into India from Pakistan via the Line of Control (LoC) or possibly through other foreign channels.
Security officials said that, in addition to technical intelligence and assistance from Western agencies, Over Ground Workers (OGWs) from across the Kashmir Valley are being questioned to gather leads. Furthermore, investigation agencies are seeking feedback from eyewitnesses to help track this satellite phone.
According to the report, investigators have so far ruled out the involvement of only the three terrorists whose pictures went viral on social media after Tuesday's incident. Another official stated that several witnesses informed authorities that more than half a dozen attackers were involved in carrying out this cowardly terror attack.
Mobile phones belonging to some OGWs were found to have been active in the Baisaran Valley at the time of the attack.
Another report suggested that security agencies have identified 15 local Over Ground Workers (OGWs) whose mobile phones were active in the Baisaran Valley during the attack on tourists on April 22.
Although investigation agencies have maintained a guarded silence, it is believed that these OGWs provided critical logistical support to the terrorists who carried out the gruesome attack.
According to sources, electronic surveillance data played a pivotal role in establishing the involvement of these OGWs. The tracking of mobile signals and communication patterns indicated that the local collaborators were in close proximity to the attack site during the carnage, directly aiding the terrorists in navigating the difficult terrain of the Baisaran Valley.
Preliminary investigations suggest that a group comprising local terrorists and at least two Pakistani militants orchestrated the brutal assault, which claimed the lives of innocent tourists.
The OGWs are believed to have provided not only guidance and shelter but also critical on-ground intelligence to the attackers, enabling them to strike with precision and subsequently evade security forces by disappearing into the dense forest areas.
