Nation Pays Tribute to Pulwama Martyrs on Anniversary of 2019 Attack

On February 14, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid respects to the CRPF personnel who lost their lives in the Pulwama terror attack on this day in 2019. He stated, "I pay homage to the brave heroes who were martyred in Pulwama. Their service and sacrifice for our nation will always be remembered."

The Pulwama attack, occurring on 14 February 2019, stands as the deadliest terror attack on India's state security personnel in Kashmir since 1989. Adil Ahmad Dar, a 22-year-old from Kakapora, carried out the attack. The incident targeted a convoy of vehicles carrying Indian security personnel on the Jammu–Srinagar National Highway in the Pulwama district of the former state of Jammu and Kashmir.

The attack resulted in the tragic loss of 40 Indian Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel, along with the perpetrator, Adil Ahmad Dar. Jaish-e-Mohammed, a Pakistan-based militant group, claimed responsibility for the attack, releasing a video of Adil Ahmad Dar, who had joined the group a year earlier.

In response, the Indian Air Force conducted a retributive strike, bombing alleged terrorist camps in Pakistan's Balakot. The Pulwama attack significantly strained India–Pakistan relations, leading to the 2019 India–Pakistan military standoff. Subsequent investigations by India identified 19 accused, and by August 2021, the main accused, along with six others, had been killed, while seven had been arrested.