‘Please Pray For My Bhai, Bhabhi’: Family Of UP Couple Injured In J&K’s Reasi Terror Attack Narrates Horror

Gunfire, shrieks, bloodied seats and a loud thud are what 31-year-old Atul Mishra and his wife, Neha, 29, who were onboard the fateful bus, which fell into a gorge in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district after being targeted by terrorists, perhaps remember.

Around 6pm on Sunday, terrorists opened fire at the 53-seater bus, which was on its way from the Shiv Khori temple to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra, causing the driver to lose control over the steering wheel. The bus fell into a gorge near the Teryath village of the Poni area of Reasi. At least nine people were killed and 41 injured in the attack.

Uttar Pradesh resident Mishra suffered a bullet injury to his head and is undergoing treatment at Government Medical College, Jammu, while his wife, Neha, is yet to recover from the shock.

WORRIED FAMILY

“Please pray for my brother who is battling for his life. My bhabhi is still in a state of shock. Only thing which we heard from her was the gun shots, blood in the bus and the fading sight of the bus falling into the gorge," Mansi, Mishra’s younger sister, who is keeping tab on every development, told News18.

Mansi, a student of Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapith University, couldn’t control her emotions while describing the condition of his brother. She said her brother got married on June 7, 2023. “Initially, we had planned a grand wedding anniversary in Kashi. But bhai and bhabhi said they wanted to seek blessings of Maa Vaishno Devi. On their insistence, my father and other family members agreed to send them off on a pilgrimage," she recollected.

Mishra’s father Rajesh Mishra said that after seeing the news of the terror attack on TV, he tried calling them, but couldn’t connect due to network issues. “Around 12 noon on Monday, we got a call from the district administration, informing about the terror strike. They said that Atul had suffered a head injury, while his wife suffered internal injuries and is in shock," Rajesh Mishra said.

He said his daughter-in-law also narrated the entire episode, saying it will be etched in her memory forever. “She told me how the peaceful, serene environment was breached by reverberating noise, which was followed by the shattering of window glasses. It was when people started screaming and the floor and seats of the bus turned red with blood that they realised that it was gunfire. She said they hid behind the seat of the bus. However, even before the terrorist could target them further, it fell into the gorge," said Rajesh Mishra.

He said his wife Sunita has stopped eating and will break her fast only when her son and daughter-in-law are back home safely.

Not only the Mishras, the entire Hanthi Gali near Kashi’s Kal Bhairav Temple is shocked and worried. Locals want the Indian government to give a befitting reply against this cowardly attack.

UP CM CALLS ATTACKS COWARDLY

Among those who died, Ruby and Anurag Verma were from UP’s Balrampur district, while four pilgrims were from Jaipur, one from Delhi and the bus driver was from Reasi and bus conductor from Katra. According to the UP government, among those who suffered injuries were largely from the East UP region, including Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Balrampur, Gonda and Meerut in West UP.

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath strongly condemned the terrorist attack, calling it “cowardly". “The cowardly attack on pilgrims in Jammu and Kashmir is extremely sad. My heartfelt condolences to the departed souls. My sympathies are with the grieving families. I pray to Lord Shri Ram to grant the departed souls a place at his holy feet and provide speedy recovery to all the injured," Adityanath posted on ‘X’.

In another post on X, the chief minister said, “Instructions have been given to the Additional Chief Secretary Home and Director General of Police of Uttar Pradesh to immediately contact the local administration and ensure proper treatment and safety of the injured in the state."

Keshav Prasad Maurya, Deputy chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, also expressed his strong condemnation of the attack. “The terrorist attack on a bus full of devotees going to Mata Vaishno Devi in Jammu and Kashmir is extremely cowardly and condemnable. I pray to God that the injured in the incident recover as soon as possible and that the departed souls find a place at his holy feet. Om Shanti," Maurya posted on X.