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Himanshi Narwal, widow of Navy officer Vinay Narwal, who was killed in the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, thanked the Indian government for Operation Sindoor, urging it to continue until terrorism ends.
New Delhi:
Himanshi Narwal, wife of Navy officer Lieutenant Vinay Narwal, who was killed in the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, welcomed India’s Operation Sindoor and thanked the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government. However, she requested the Centre not to end the operation and make sure it is the “start of the end of terrorism”.
“My husband was in the defence forces, and he wanted to protect the peace, protect the innocent lives. He wanted to make sure that there is no hatred and terror in this country. I am thankful to the government, but I request them not to end it here. I want them to make sure that this is just the start of the end of terrorism in our country,” she said.
The couple, who were married days before the terror strike, were visiting Kashmir for their honeymoon when the 26-year-old Navy officer was killed along with 25 others. Heartbreaking visuals of Ms Narwal sitting beside the body of her husband with her wedding chooda (bangles) still on her hands, had shaken the entire nation.
Days later, Ms Narwal became a target of a troll storm on social media over her remarks urging people not to be hostile towards Muslims or Kashmiris.
“I want the entire country to pray for him (Vinay), that wherever he is, he has found peace. That is all I ask. There is something else I wish to say. I see hatred growing, directed at Muslims and Kashmiris. We do not want this. We only wish for peace-nothing else,” Ms Narwal had said in her first remarks after the terror attack.
Many people made vile remarks against Ms Narwal, while some supported her. The National Commission of Women (NCW) called the trolling “condemnable” and “unfortunate”.
‘Terrorists will think 100 times’
Lieutenant Vinay Narwal’s father, Rajesh Narwal, also hailed India’s response to the Pahalgam terror attack, saying that terrorists will “think 100 times” before repeating such attacks in the future.
Also Read | Operation Sindoor: Army Videos Show Indian Strikes On Terror Camps In Pakistan
“When this (Pahalgam) incident happened, even then media came to my home and asked what I expected from the government. My answer was that I had faith in our government. And today, the government has justified that trust. I had said that such a thing (retaliatory strikes) has to be done so that no one dares to do such a cowardly act again. The strikes carried out on the terror targets will resonate in their minds forever,” he said.
India’s Operation Sindoor
India late Tuesday carried out 24 missile strikes in 25 minutes across nine locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir, killing 70 terrorists and injuring another 60, to avenge the Pahalgam terror attack. The strikes were carried out in Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Bahawalpur, Rawalakot, Chakswari, Bhimber, Neelum Valley, Jhelum, and Chakwa.
According to government sources, the attack was more than a military response and was synchronised to avoid detection and maximise damage.
“It was a statement of strategic resolve. Through 24 precisely coordinated missile strikes across nine terrorist-linked locations, India demonstrated that it would no longer tolerate cross-border terrorism, nor the complicity of state institutions that enable it,” a source said.
India’s military response represented a “measured, non-escalatory, proportionate, and responsible” answer to Pakistan’s support of cross-border terrorism, the government said during a briefing.
Pakistan, in response, resorted to ‘arbitrary and indiscriminate firing’ and artillery shelling across the LoC, killing three civilians in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch sector.
