‘Their souls will be in peace': Families of Pahalgam terror attack victims from Gujarat's Bhavnagar, after Operation Sindoor

Indian Express

07-05-2025

'My son's dream was to join the Army and fight for the nation but now, look at God's will — it became the opposite,' says 45-year-old Kajalben Parmar who lost her 17-year-old son Smit and 46-year-old husband Yatishbhai in the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, when the family was a trip to Jammu and Kashmir.
She demands 'much more' than Operation Sindoor: 'This should only be a jhalak (glimpse) of the action taken by India against the terrorists who took away sindoor (husbands) and lives of their sons.'
Kajalben told The Indian Express, 'Modi saheb (Prime Minister Narendra Modi) is like God to us. We won't forget what the country and Army did for us. With the action taken by the Army and Modi saheb within 15 days of the attack, we are really feeling good. The terrorists who took away our husbands have been taught a lesson. The loss and grief cannot be forgotten for life but at least their soul will be in peace.
Yatishbhai Sudhirbhai Parmar's seven-member family left for Srinagar on April 16 to attend a Ram Katha by spiritual leader Morari Bapu. The family was set to return to Gujarat in a day or two, but the Pahalgam terror attack brought their trip to Jammu and Kashmir to a tragic end as Yatishbhai and his 17-year-old son Smit were among the 26 people killed by terrorists. The family, originally from Palitana, lives in the Nandanvan Society in Kaliyabid area of Bhavnagar city.
'I am not able to look at the photo of Smit on my phone now. He really wanted to join the Army and had also joined NCC in school. I wanted to see him in an Army uniform. The loss is forever,' Kajalben told The Indian Express.
Bharatbhai Parmar (38), cousin of Yatishbhai, said, 'We are happy that the terrorists have got a befitting reply. This is absolutely correct, it is very good. We are a little relieved that the Indian Army has avenged the lives of our family members.'
Revealing the incidents of April 22, Kajalben told this paper, 'We only heard Allah hu Akbar and daudo bhago. My husband and son were at some distance from us. What happened after that, we are clueless. It was only my 15-year-old nephew Sarthak Manojbhai Nathani who pulled me and the other family members from the scene and sought help from the Army and we could return safely. Only his bravery could bring us back alive.'
Kajalben's elder son Abhishek who works in a private laboratory in Bhavnagar too expressed his satisfaction over the action, terming it to be a swift action within 15 days.
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel has paid tributes to the late father-son of Bhavnagar at their residence. The bodies of the father and son killed in the terrorist attack were brought from Srinagar to Mumbai and from Mumbai to Ahmedabad. From Ahmedabad, both the bodies were brought to Bhavnagar by road at midnight.
While Yatishbhai owned a salon and restaurant, his son Smit was a Class 11 student at Vidhyadhish School. They had gone to Jammu and Kashmir to attend Morari Bapu's Katha at Sher-i Kashmir International Convention Centre in Srinagar from April 19 to 27. The Parmars, along with four members from Yatishbhai's in-laws' side, left for Srinagar on April 16.