In the aftermath of the horrific Pahalgam terror attack, BJP Yuva Morcha National President and Member of Parliament Tejasvi Surya recounted the tragic stories of the victims’ families, whom he accompanied on the flight carrying the mortal remains from Srinagar to Bengaluru.
Speaking to the media at Bengaluru International Airport, Surya shared the poignant moment involving Pallavi, the wife of Manjunath Rao, one of the three victims from Karnataka. Manjunath was shot dead in front of his wife during the attack. Clutching onto her husband’s bloodstained jacket, Pallavi told Surya she would never wash it—it was the last tangible memory of the man she lost.
He recalled how Manjunath’s son, Abhi, had recently scored 96% in his Class 12 exams and was celebrating his success with the family’s first vacation. “He told me with tears in his eyes that it was also the first and last flight his father ever took,” Surya said.
Surya also spoke of the three-year-old son of Bharat Bhushan, another victim of the attack, who remains unaware that his father is never coming home. “The child, too young to grasp the tragedy, kept pointing at airplanes outside the window and showing them to his newly widowed mother. She handed him a mobile phone to distract him,” he said.
Calling the attack “one of the most barbaric and cowardly in recent memory,” Surya described the anguish of families trying to shield elderly members from the devastating news.
“The Government of India, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has already initiated steps in response. We ensured the safe return of the mortal remains and family members with support from the Union Home Ministry, local authorities, and the Karnataka government,” he stated.
Surya reaffirmed his faith in the Indian Army and security forces, saying, “Our forces will respond in a language the enemy understands—at a time and place of their choosing. As citizens, we must trust and stand by them.”
He added: “In this moment of grief, the nation stands united with the bereaved families. Their pain is our pain, and justice will be delivered.”
(With IANS inputs)
