Karnal: Rahul Gandhi meets Pahalgam attack victim Lt Vinay Narwal's kin

Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday met family members of Indian Navy officer Lt Vinay Narwal, who was one of 26 Indians killed in the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on 22 April.

Accompanied by senior Congress leader B.K. Hariprasad, who is the party's Haryana affairs in-charge, the LoP reached Karnal in Haryana in the afternoon. Haryana Congress chief Udai Bhan, Congress' Rohtak MP Deepender Singh Hooda and party leader Divyanshu Budhiraja were also present when Gandhi arrived.

After paying his tributes to the late naval officer upon reaching his residence, Gandhi spent more than one-and-a-half hours with Narwal's family.

In an X post in Hindi describing his visit, Gandhi wrote, "The government has the Opposition's complete support — the guilty should be punished in a manner that nobody dares eye India again."

पहलगाम हमले में शहीद हुए लेफ्टिनेंट विनय नरवाल जी के शोकाकुल परिवार से मिलकर उनका दुख बांटा, उन्हें सांत्वना दी। अपार दुख में भी उनका हौसला और साहस देश के लिए एक संदेश है - हमें एकजुट रहना है।

पूरा देश शहीदों के परिवारों के साथ खड़ा है। सरकार को विपक्ष का पूरा समर्थन है -…

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 6, 2025

Speaking to reporters later, Hooda said Gandhi consoled the family. Haryana Congress chief Bhan also told PTI that Gandhi had consoled the family and shared their grief. "He met with the family members, including his parents," said Bhan. After meeting the family, Gandhi left for Delhi, he said.

Married just three weeks before the deadly attack, 26-year-old Narwal, accompanied by wife Himanshi Narwal, was on a honeymoon trip to Pahalgam when terrorists shot him at point blank range.

Himanshi has since become the target of vicious right-wing for her public statement against targeted attacks on Kashmiris in retaliation for the fact that the terrorists made it a point to kill Hindus only. The one Muslim to lose his life was local Adil Shah, shot as he reportedly tried to wrest a firearm from an attacker.

Karnal, Haryana: Leader of Opposition and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi leaves the residence of Indian Navy Lieutenant Vinay Narwal, who was killed in the Pahalgam terror attack https://t.co/NPmIdVuqeL pic.twitter.com/okO8wSoWpq

— IANS (@ians_india) May 6, 2025

A week ago, Gandhi had also visited the family members of Shubham Dwivedi, another victim of the Pahalgam attack, in Kanpur. Stressing that strict and concrete action should be taken against the terrorists, Gandhi had then also said a united Opposition had given full support to the Central government.

Besides those killed, several others were injured when terrorists opened fire at a meadow near the popular tourist town of Pahalgam in south Kashmir's Anantnag district.

With PTI inputs