Survivors of the terror attack on a bus carrying pilgrims in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district have recounted their harrowing experience. They described how the assailants continued to fire at the vehicle even after it fell into a gorge, attempting to ensure that all the passengers were killed. The passengers pretended to be dead by staying silent to avoid further attention from the terrorists.
One of the eyewitnesses shared with India Today TV, "They were 6-7 terrorists, their faces were covered with masks. Initially, they fired on the bus by covering it from all sides of the road. When the bus fell, they came towards it and kept firing to ensure everyone was killed."
Another survivor added, "We maintained silence to make them believe we were dead. The incident happened 30 minutes after we took the bus to Vaishno Devi from Shivkhorhi (Reasi) at 6 pm. We were afraid and just wanted to get back to our homes. There were kids and women also on the bus and all got injured. Police and locals arrived to rescue us after 10 to 15 minutes of this attack."
Recounting the horrific attack, one of the survivors said, "I saw one of the terrorists firing at the bus. He kept firing at the bus for 20 minutes even after it fell into a gorge."
The attack resulted in the driver being hit by a bullet, causing him to lose control and the bus to fall into a gorge. In the aftermath, ten people were killed, and 33 others were injured. The terrorists are believed to be part of the same group responsible for recent attacks in Rajouri and Poonch. They ambushed the bus by hiding in dense vegetation.
A massive search operation has been launched to trace the terrorists. Home Ministry sources informed India Today TV that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has been deployed to investigate the attack. Drones are being used to search the forest area, and a team from the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) has also joined the operation.
