The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has clarified that the initial sketches of the suspects, released by the Jammu and Kashmir Police after the Pahalgam terror attack, were mistakenly linked to a past shootout, and the real perpetrators of the attack were different individuals, as per the report released by the security agencies.
Last week, the security forces eliminated three terrorists, including the mastermind of the April 22 Pahalgam attack, during Operation Mahadev on the outskirts of Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar. The Indian Army's elite para commandos, on July 28, gunned down Sulieman alias Asif, the alleged mastermind of the April 22 attack, along with two of his associates, in an encounter at Mulnar in the Harwan area near Dachigam National Park.
Misidentified initial sketches – Why the confusion?
According to the investigation agencies, "Jammu and Kashmir Police had released sketches of Hashim Musa, Ali Bhai alias Talha, and local Adil Hussain Thoker on 24 April 2025. After the July encounter, the NIA clarified that those sketches were based on a photograph found on a phone retrieved from an unrelated December 2024 shoot-out; the actual attackers were different men."
The findings were drawn from the post-encounter evidence released by security agencies recently.
All three attackers were Pakistani nationals and LeT operatives
The recovery of Pakistani voter ID cards, chocolates manufactured in Karachi, and a micro-SD chip containing biometric data has confirmed that the three Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists killed during Operation Mahadev on July 28 were from Pakistan.
As per the findings drawn from post-encounter evidence, forensic, documentary, and testimonial evidence collected during and after Operation Mahadev conclusively shows that all three attackers were Pakistani nationals and senior Lashkare-Taiba (LeT) operatives who had been hiding in the Dachigam-Harwan forest belt since the day of the attack. No local Kashmiri was part of the shooting team.
Names, Aliases and LeT Rankings
|
Real/Primary Alias |
Operational Code Name |
LeT Category |
Role in Pahalgam |
|
Suleman Shah |
Faizal Jatt |
A++ commander |
Mastermind and lead shooter |
|
Abu Hamza |
Afghan |
A-grade commander |
Second gunman |
|
Yasir |
Jibran |
A-grade commander |
Third gunman and rear security |
Pakistani government-issued documents recovered
1. Pakistan Voter ID Cards
- Two laminated voter slips issued by the Election Commission of Pakistan were found in the pockets of Suleman Shah and Abu Hamza.
- The voter serial numbers (photographed and circulated to the FIA) correspond to electoral rolls in Lahore (NA-125) and Gujranwala (NA-79) respectively.
2. NADRA-linked Smart-ID chips
- A micro-SD recovered from a damaged sat-phone contained the NADRA biometric records (fingerprints, facial template, family tree) of all three men, confirming their Pakistani citizenship and addresses in Changa Manga (Kasur district) and Koiyan village near Rawalakot, PoK.
3. Pakistan-manufactured personal items
- Wrappers of "Candyland" and "ChocoMax" chocolates (both brands produced in Karachi) were found in the same rucksack that carried spare magazines.
- Lot numbers printed on wrappers were traced to a May 2024 consignment shipped to Muzaffarabad, PoK.
Infiltration route and timeline in Kashmir
The movement of the terrorists involved in the Pahalgam attack has been traced by intelligence agencies. The trio reportedly crossed the Line of Control (LoC) near the Gurez sector in May 2022, a detail confirmed through intercepted radio communication from the Pakistani side during their initial check-in.
On April 21, 2025, the terrorists took shelter in a seasonal hut (dhok) at Hill Park, approximately 2 km from Baisaran. The next day, April 22, the terrorists trekked to the Baisaran meadow, where they launched the attack at 2:30 pm before escaping into the dense forests of Dachigam.
| Date | Event | Evidence |
| May 2022 | Crossed LoC near Gurez sector | Intelligence Bureau intercepts placed their first radio check-in from the Pakistani side. |
| Apr 21 2025 | Moved into a seasonal hut ("dhok") at Hill Park, 2 km from Baisaran | Two detained Kashmiri helpers, Parvaiz and Bashir Ahmad Jothar, confessed to sheltering them overnight and providing cooked food. |
| Apr 22 2025 (morning) |
Trekked to Baisaran meadow | GPS waypoints recovered from Suleman Shah’s Garmin device match the exact firing positions reported by eyewitnesses. |
| Apr 22 2025 (1430 hrs) |
Carried out shootings; escaped north-east toward Dachigam | Shell casings at the scene matched the three AK-103 rifles recovered on 28 July. |
Forensic and technical confirmation
- Ballistics: The 7.62 × 39 mm casings found in Baisaran were test-fired against the three AK-103 rifles seized on 28 July; striation marks matched 100 %.
- DNA: Mitochondrial profiles extracted from blood on a torn shirt found at Pahalgam were identical to the DNA of the three bodies recovered in Dachigam.
- Digital footprint: A Huawei satellite phone (IMEI 86761204-XXXXXX) used by the trio had been pinging Inmarsat-4 F1 every night between 22 April and 25 July; triangulation narrowed the search grid to 4 km² inside Harwan forest.
Command and control links inside Pakistan
- Sajid Saifullah Jatt, LeT’s south-Kashmir operations chief (resident: Changa Manga, Lahore), was the overall handler; voice samples from the recovered sat-phone match his earlier intercepted calls.
- Rizwan Anees, LeT Rawalakot chief, visited the families of the slain attackers on 29 July to organise ghibana namaz (funeral prayers without bodies) and was filmed by locals—footage now part of the Indian dossier.
Also Read: LeT commander who wanted to attend funeral of Pahalgam attacker flee PoK village after confrontation
Also Read: Operation Mahadev: How ballistic matching helped India trace Pahalgam attack terrorists | Explained