MHA appoints Shri Singh as special public prosecutor in Pahalgam terror attack case

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is set to file a charge sheet soon in the Pahalgam terror attack case, naming the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT)

New Delhi: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has appointed advocate Shri Singh as the Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) to conduct the trial in the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack case, as the National Investigation Agency (NIA) moves closer to filing a charge sheet in the matter.

The three terrorists, who shot dead 25 tourists and a pony operator on April 22 at Baisaran meadow in Pahalgam, were killed by security forces on July 28. (AFP)

“...the Central government hereby appoints Shri Singh, advocate, as Special Public Prosecutor for conducting trial and other matters related to NIA case No. RC-02/2025/NIA/JMU, on behalf of the NIA, before the NIA special court, Jammu, and the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh for a period of three years from the date of publication of this notification or till the completion of the trial of the said case, whichever is earlier,” the MHA said in a notification.

The SPP will lead the trial in coordination with the investigating officer, an official requesting anonymity said.

HT reported on Thursday that the NIA is set to file a charge sheet soon in the Pahalgam terror attack case, naming the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

A Jammu court had, on September 18, given a 45-day extension to the federal agency to complete the probe in the terror attack, which will end this week.

Two Pahalgam locals — Bashir Ahmad Jothar and Parvez Ahmad Jothar — arrested in June for harbouring and assisting the three Pakistani terrorists Suleiman Shah, Hamza Afghani alias Afghan, and Jibran, will also be named in the charge sheet.

Bashir and Parvez Jothar were arrested on June 22, nearly two months after the Pahalgam attack, in which 25 tourists and a pony operator were killed. They harboured the three armed terrorists at a seasonal dhok (hut) at Hill Park before the attack on April 21. The NIA, in September, sought 45 days from a Jammu court beyond the stipulated 90-day time to complete the probe, which was allowed by the court on September 18.

The three terrorists, who shot dead 25 tourists and a pony operator on April 22 at Baisaran meadow in Pahalgam, were killed by security forces on July 28 in the Dachigam forest area. Union home minister Amit Shah had said in the Parliament on July 29 that the terrorists were from Pakistan and belonged to LeT.

The NIA has questioned over 1,000 individuals in its Pahalgam probe, including tourists, mule and pony owners, photographers, employees, and shop workers.

In response to the Pahalgam attack, India had launched Operation Sindoor on May 7. Indian forces bombed nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in pre-dawn strikes — in which at least 100 terrorists were killed — and sparked a series of attacks and counter attacks across the western border, involving fighter jets, missiles, armed drones, and fierce artillery and rocket duels. In one such attack on the night of May 9–10, the Indian Air Force struck targets at 13 Pakistani airbases and military installations. After four days of fighting, military hostilities were stopped on the evening of May 10 as the two nations reached an understanding.