A large-scale search operation is underway to capture the terrorists responsible for the attack on a passenger bus in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district, which left nine people dead and 41 injured, officials said. 

Teams from the National Investigation Agency (NIA), State Investigation Agency (SIA), and the Forensic Department have visited the scene of the attack to begin their investigation.

On Sunday, terrorists fired upon a 53-seater bus carrying pilgrims from Shiv Khori temple to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine near Teryath village in the Poni area. The bus subsequently fell into a deep gorge due to the gunfire.

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha visited the injured passengers at GMC and Narayana hospitals on Monday. He said that the terrorist attack was part of a malicious plan to create chaos in the Jammu region, a plan that will be thwarted. The Director General of Police (DGP), along with senior officers, including Army personnel, is scheduled to visit the site to gather firsthand information about the incident.

The Hurriyat Conference condemned the terrorist attack on the bus carrying pilgrims in Reasi district, expressing grief over the incident. “The Hurriyat Conference has and will always condemn all forms of violence against humanity. The loss of precious human lives is deeply disturbing,” the grouping said.