One of the 26 victims killed in yesterday’s terror attack at Kashmir’s Pahalgam was an Indian expatriate from Dubai. A 42-year-old businessman from Kerala, who was on vacation with his wife, was the UAE resident among the dead. His wife survived the attack with minor injuries.
The victim, who was working in Dubai’s construction industry for more than a decade, had recently come back to India to mark his parents’ anniversary before the Kashmir visit. Tearful family members in India and the UAE remembered him as a “kind family man” who was set to bring his aging parents to Dubai later this year.
Indian security personnel have undertaken one of their biggest counter-terror operations in recent times, with para-commanders of elite rank airdropped into the thick forests surrounding Pahalgam. Intelligence reports indicate at least three terrorists of a Pakistan-based group are still on the run after the attack.
The murder of the Dubai expat has sent shockwaves across Indian communities in the Gulf, with the Indian missions in UAE launching emergency helplines. While condemnation pours in from around the world, security lapses at what was to be a high-alert area during the Amarnath pilgrimage season are being questioned.
Latest Developments:
• Victim Ramesh Kumar (name changed), native of Kaloor who worked in Dubai since 2011
• Wife sustained bullet graze injuries, undergoing treatment at Army hospital
• UAE Indian communities to hold memorial services in Dubai, Sharjah
• India’s MEA working with UAE authorities for遗体 repatriation
• Security tightened around Indian expat pockets in Gulf countries
