‘Bullet touched my hair': How Karnataka family narrowly survived Pahalgham terror attack
One flick of her hair, a stubborn child's hunger and an unexpected craving for Maggi noodles became a lifeline for Karnataka's Hegde family, which narrowly escaped the deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam.
Pradeep Hegde, his wife Shubha, and their 12-year-old son Siddhant were on a trip to Kashmir to explore the Baisaran meadows — often called 'Mini Switzerland'.
On the fateful day of April 22, Shubha Hegde was saved by a hair as terrorists stormed the valley and killed 25 tourists and a local pony operator, NDTV reported.
According to the Hegde family, they had reached the top of the meadows after a tough, muddy hour-long horse ride, where they spent some time sightseeing and were about to head toward the adventure activity zone when Siddhant, feeling hungry, insisted they stop to eat first.
Pahalgam attack news live updates: PM Modi-led CCS reviews J&K security situation
"About 15-20 seconds later, we saw two guys with big guns. They were shooting continuously," Pradeep said, adding that while one terrorist went towards the lower part of the Valley, another headed towards them.
"Initially, we did not realise what was happening. Then we lay down. At this point, my wife thought of getting my bag, which was on the table. Our IDs and phones were in it. She got up to take the bag and felt something go past her right ear. It was a bullet," Pradeep added.
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That's when Shubha, realising their IDs and phones were left on the table, instinctively got up to grab the bag. In that moment, in the brief time it took her to lean forward, a bullet whizzed past her right ear, grazing her hair.
"Something touched my hair," Shubha recalled. "I didn't realise it was a bullet at first, but the force made me turn — I saw it had hit the floor. God saved me."
Pradeep said he had no clue at that point that it was a terrorist attack, adding that someone shouted and asked people to run towards the gate.
"I was 100 per cent sure we were going to die," Pradeep said. "But my wife just kept saying 'nothing will happen'. That confidence, I think, kept us going."
Also Read | Man says terror suspect spoke to him day before Pahalgam attack: 'Hindu ho kya?'
Pradeep further said that there was a rush at the gate of the valley, which created a stampede-like situation, due to which their son Siddhant fell.
The family eventually found their horseman hiding behind a tree, terrified but alive. He agreed to help. With Siddhant too exhausted to continue on foot, the horseman caught one of the runaway horses and placed the boy on it. Later, he found two more horses for Pradeep and Shubha, guiding them safely downhill, back to life.
On April 22, terrorists killed 26 people, including one Nepali national, in Kashmir's Pahalgam. The assault has drawn widespread condemnation and prompted swift diplomatic and strategic countermeasures from the government.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday chaired a high-level security meeting with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the three service chiefs, and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.
PM Modi told the top defence brass that the armed forces have "complete operational freedom" to decide on the mode, targets and timing of India's response to the Pahalgam terror attack, government sources told PTI.
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