Insight Bureau: On March 23, India will remember the black day which wrenched the hearts of everyone in the country- “The Nadimarg Massacre”. The tragedy occurred on 23 March, 2003.
Hindu Kashmiri Pandits were the victim of this nerve racking incident as 24 Hindu Kashmiri Pandits were brutally killed in the village of Nadimarg in Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir by Lashkar-E-Taiba terrorists.
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The armed Islamic terrorists came dressed in counterfeit military uniforms. The attack took place between 11 pm and midnight. Victims included 11 men, 11 women, and two small boys who were lined up and shot and killed by the gunmen. The victims ranged from a 65-year-old man to a 2-year-old boy.
On night of 23 March 2003 the terrorists entered at Nadimarg village near Shopian in Pulwama district in Jammu and Kashmir and dragged the Hindus out from their homes, lined them and shot them from automatic weapons. The policemen posted there fled the scene while locals supported the incident . The killers disfigured the bodies of the victims, looted their houses and took away the ornaments from bodies of the dead women.
Aftermath of the massacre
Mastermind ‘commander’ Zia Mustafa was arrested in 2003 and held in prison. In October 2021, Mustafa was taken out of jail by security forces to identify militant hideouts in a forest in Poonch. However, in the subsequent encounter with the militants, he was killed in cross-fire.
Three other Lashkar-E-Taiba militants suspected to be responsible for this massacre were gunned down by Mumbai police on 29 March. Another Militant suspected of being involved in the massacre was arrested in April 2003.
Documentary
The climax of movie The Kashmir Files, written and directed by Vivek Agnihotri, is based on the massacre. The movie shows Islamic terrorists lining up 24 Kashmiri Hindus in Nadimarg and shooting all of them, including a baby.
The fire of the ‘Nadimarg Massacre’ is still burning with each any every wounds open and fresh. The nightmare of Islamic Terrorists’ atrocity on Hindu Kashmiri Pandits will forever stay in the memory.