'Terrorists Continued Firing Even After Our Bus Fell Into Gorge': Survivors Recount Terror Attack In J&K's Reasi

The survivors of the Reasi terror attack revealed horrific details of the firing by terrorists on the bus carrying pilgrims on Sunday. Survivors said that the firing by terrorists went on for 15-20 minutes and that the terrorists continued to fire bullets even minutes after the bus fell into the gorge.

“There were at least three terrorists. One of them started firing from the front of the bus and the bullets hit the driver. It seems the driver died on the spot. Two of the terrorists fired from the left side and this continued for about 15-20 minutes. They continued to fire even after the bus fell into the gorge,” said Aayush Gupta, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, who was injured in the attack. Aayush was travelling with his parents and brother.

Another survivor said the firing began after the bus left from Shiv Khori temple and covered a distance of about 4-5 km. “After having darshan at Mata Vaishno Devi, I went to Shiv Khori. While returning from there, after 4-5 km, bullets were fired on our bus. The firing did not stop even after our bus fell into the ditch. The driver was shot and then some people were also injured in the firing,” he said.

Another survivor said that his son saw one of the terrorists fire at the bus from behind. “I went for darshan of Shiv Khori. While returning, some people opened fire on our bus. Later, the bus fell into a ditch. Several people were injured in the incident. The firing did not stop even after the bus fell. I think there were 2-3 terrorists there. My son saw a man firing on our bus from behind,” the survivor said.

At least ten people including the driver were killed and 33 were injured after the bus carrying pilgrims was attacked by terrorists and fell into a gorge in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has announced ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh each for the next of kin of pilgrims who died in the Reasi terror attack. He has also approved Rs 50,000 each for those injured.

The injured are being treated at different hospitals. A control room has been created by the district administration to provide all necessary assistance. A joint security force temporary HQ by J&K Police, Army and CRPF has been set up at the site and operation is in progress to neutralise the perpetrators of Reasi terror attack.