NEW DELHI: The symbolic funeral (Janaza-Ghaib) for Tahir Habib (Jibran), one of the Pahalgam terrorists killed in Operation Mahadev in Jammu and Kashmir, was recently held in his native village of Khai Gala in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), reported The Times of India.
The event further confirmed Islamabad’s hand in the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed the lives of 26 people in Jammu and Kashmir.
Footage posted on Telegram shows villagers, including elderly locals, gathering for final prayers in memory of Habib, a former Pakistani soldier and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) operative.
Tahir, designated as a Category ‘A’ terrorist, had been a key target for Indian security agencies due to his role in cross-border militancy. His death, along with two others in Srinagar last week in Operation Mahadev, marked a significant success for Indian forces.
However, the ceremony took an unexpected turn when local Lashkar commander Rizwan Hanif attempted to attend. According to eyewitnesses, the family rejected the presence of LeT operatives, but Hanif persisted, resulting in a tense exchange.
“Lashkar operatives threatened mourners with a gun, sparking outrage among villagers. The residents of Khai Gala, who have long been wary of radicalisation, are now planning a public boycott to oppose terror recruitment,” a source familiar with the incident said.
Another source added, “A Lashkar commander facing public backlash and being forced to flee is a testament to the changing dynamics in the region.”
The tensions surrounding Habib’s funeral reflect not just local resentment against terror groups, but also the broader reach of India’s retaliatory operations like Operation Sindoor, aimed at dismantling cross-border terror networks in the aftermath of the Pahalgam massacre.
Under ‘Operation Mahadev,’ Indian forces on July 28 neutralised three Pakistani terrorists in the Lidwas forest near Harwan, on the outskirts of Srinagar.
