FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms FREE PRESS Vol. XLI No. 330 | INDORE | THURSDAY | MAY 8, 2025 | Pages 14 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. 38281/83 www.freepressjournal.in Sports ROHIT BIDS ADIEU TO TEST P.12 ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: INDORE UJJAIN MONEY PUNE BHOPAL NASHIK MUMBAI E-paper Edit Action, reaction & a lesson P.6 Softer vegetable prices lower meal cost in Apr Cinema SRK’s stylish thanks P.14 OPERATION SINDOOR | 24 Strikes at 9 terror camps in Pok, Pakistan’s Punjab hit, 70 terrorists killed 25 MINUTES OF FURY Damage assessment: Pakistani troops inspect destruction wrought by Indian defence forces Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI Exactly a fortnight after the Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people were identified on the basis of religion and killed by terrorist, India launched ‘Operation Sindoor’ early on Thursday morning hitting nine terrorist training camps and launchpads inside Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) with 24 missile strikes. The strikes, which took place within a span of 25 minutes, left a large number of suspected terrorists dead and injured at the nine locations at Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Bahawalpur, Rawalakot, Chakswari, Bhimber, Neelum Valley, Jhelum and Chakwa in Pakistan and as per unconfirmed reports around 70 terrorists were killed and another 60 injured. Media reports from Pakistan also cited Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar claiming that 10 members of his family and four aides were killed in the attack at Bahawalpur. Besides JeM, the Indian armed forces had also targeted bases of the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen and the Lashkar-e-Taiba, whose offshoot, The Resistance Front, had claimed responsibility for the Pahalgam attack. The first of the strikes took place around 1 am. The Additional Director General of Public Information of Indian Army posted on “X” about it with Pak: Ready to ease tensions if India de-escalates “#JusticeServed”. It wrote that “Target 1” was Abbas Terrorist Camp at Kotli at a distance of 13 Km from LoC (POJK). Describing it as the “nerve centre for training suicide bombers of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT)”, the Army said this centre that provided “key training infrastructure for over 50 terrorists” was destroyed at 1.04 am. At 1.44 am, the Ministry of Defence announced that the armed forces had launched Operation Sindoor hitting terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and PoK. It categorically stated that the actions were “focused, measured and non-escalatory in nature” and that “no Pakistani military facilities have been targeted.” In a clear message that India did not desire escalation, the note had also stated that India “demonstrated considerable restraint in selection of targets and method of execution”. The MoD had also specified that a detailed press conference will be held at 10 am. In the morning, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri briefed the media about Operation Sindoor. He said the Pahalgam attack was “driven by the objective of undermining normalcy returning to Kashmir” and “the family members were deliberately traumatised through the manner of killing, accompanied by the exhortation that they should take back the message.” 4Continued on | P8 –AGENCIES NOW, OUR WOMEN ‘PIN THEM DOWN’ Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI T wo highly decorated women officers of the Indian Air Force and the Indian Army were on Tuesday given the all-important role of briefing officers by the Centre for explaining the details of Oper- ation Sindoor to the media. After Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri briefed the media, the floor was handed over to Colonel Sophia Qureshi (R) and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh (L) and who through an audiovideo presentation showed how the infrastructure of the Lashkar-e-Tayyeba, Jaish-eMohammad and the Hizb- o military installations were targeted. The strikes were focused solely on infrastructure linked to cross-border terrorism Col Sofiya Qureshi N 18 airports shut, 200 flights grounded More than 200 flights have been cancelled and at least 18 airports, including Srinagar, have been temporarily shut for operations amid restrictions in the wake of the armed forces launching missile attacks against Pakistan on Wednesday mornin""g. According to the source, more than 200 flights to and from various airports have been cancelled by airlines, with IndiGo alone cancelling around 160 flights. ul-Mujahideen was dismantled through the strikes on nine of their locations in Pakistan and PoK. Of the sites targeted, four were of JeM, three of LeT and two of HuM. By bringing forth the two officers India also demonstrated that it would not let Pakistan sow any seeds of discord within its communities. The officers I Wing Commander Vyomika Singh Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday met President Droupadi Murmu and briefed her on Indian armed forces' precision strikes at terrorist hideouts in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). "Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi called on President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan and briefed her about Operation Sindoor," the president's office said in a post on X and shared pictures of the meeting. 10 of Masood Azhar’s family killed J-e-M chief Maulana Masood Azhar acknowledged on Wednesday that 10 members of his family and four close associates were killed in India's missile attack on the outfit's headquarters in Bahawalpur. A statement attributed to Azhar said those killed in the attack on Jamia Masjid Subhan Allah in Bahawalpur included hi elder sister and her husband, a nephew and his wife, another niece, and five children from his extended family. POONCH/ TANGDHAR: Fifteen innocent civilians have been killed and 43 injured in artillery firing by the Pakistan Army since yesterday night which has hit civilian areas in Poonch and Tangdhar, defence sources said on Wednesday. Pakistan Army has targeted civilian areas in the border areas. The shelling caused panic among villagers and damaged several houses. Shelling by Pakistan damaged civilian infrastructure, shattered window panes and cracked walls. Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI It was a long night and day for Prime Minister Narendra Modi as after attending a media event on Tuesday evening, he monitored the conduct of Operation Sindoor early on Wednesday morning and then held a number of meetings to both review the operation and sent across a message of it being “business as usual” for India as a number of non-strategic decisions were taken in a Cabinet meeting. Later in the morning Modi first met Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval who briefed him about the strikes as also how the armed forces were prepared for any kind of response to them from Pakistan. The situation in Jammu and Kashmir, where Pakistan had retaliated by shelling, resulting in loss of lives and roperty, was also discussed. The PM had given full operational freedom to choose the mode, target and timing for their response to the Pahalgam attack. The PM then conducted a PM cancels Europe trip Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called off his scheduled three-nation Europe tour in the wake of heightened tensions with Pakistan, sources confirmed on Wednesday. PM Modi was scheduled to travel to Croatia, Norway and the Netherlands starting May 13 and also participate in the 3rd India-Nordic Summit in Oslo on May 15-16. Last month, PM Modi had cut short his Saudi Arabia visit and returned home immediately after the Pahalgam attack. PM also decided not to travel to Moscow to attend the Victory Day celebrations of Russia. –IANS meeting of the Cabinet in which decisions were taken on several non-strategic issues. He is learnt to have told the Cabinet that it was a “proud moment for everyone” and since “the entire nation was looking towards us”. 4Continued on | P8 Sajjad Gul, Lashkar link to Pahalgam CM MONITORS DRILL, URGES AWARENESS BHOPAL ISLAMABAD Pakistan is ready to "wrap up" tensions with India, if New Delhi de-escalates the situation, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said on Wednesday. His remarks came hours after India carried out a military strike on terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Asif was reported as saying by Bloomberg Television that Pakistan will only respond if attacked. "We have been saying all along in the last fortnight that we'll never initiate anything hostile towards India. But if we're attacked, we'll respond. If India backs down, we will definitely wrap up this tension," he said. Regarding the possibility of talks, the minister said he was not aware of any such potential engagements. Indian armed forces early Wednesday carried out missile strikes on nine terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in retaliation for the Pahalgam terror attack Pak firing kills 15, injures 43 Flawless mission: PM tells Cabinet Mock drill in 5 cities tests war readiness Our Staff Reporter PTI 4Continued on | P8 ndian armed forces are fully prepared to respond to Pakistani misadventures, if any that will escalate this situation PM Modi briefs Prez Flagging the truth: Pak soldiers mourn terrorists picked for the briefing have an exemplary record. Colonel Sophia Qureshi is a decorated officer of the Corps of Signals and the first woman Army officer to lead a contingent in a multinational military exercise. In a massive state-wide civil defence simulation, mock drills were conducted on Wednesday across five major districts of Madhya Pradesh — Bhopal, Indore, Jabalpur, Gwalior and Katni. The coordinated exercise, held as per directives of the Ministry of Home Affairs, aimed at preparing forces and civilians alike for war-like emergency scenarios. The drills kicked off around 4 hief Minister Mohan Yadav reviewed the drill operations across all five cities and held discussions with district collectors. He said that every district must remain alert and complete all necessary civil defence preparations. He also directed that civilians be educated about emergency protocols to protect themselves in crises. “Public participation and awareness are key to a safe and effective response,” CM said, calling on officials to intensify civil defence outreach efforts. C PTI PM and continued into the evening with a city-wide blackout, plunging urban areas into total darkness for several minutes. This was followed by emergency response rehearsals, where police and civil defence units simulated fire control, rescue of injured civilians and emergency evacuations. videos recorded through hidden cameras installed in the institute's library. The videos allegedly show Khan engaging in obscene acts with female students, whom he later blackmailed by threatening to leak the footage. Sheikh Sajjad Gul, a 50-yearold Kashmiri and head of Lashkar-e-Taiba proxy The Resistance Front (TRF), has emerged as the mastermind of the Pahalgam terror attack, officials revealed on Wednesday. Holed up in the Cantonment town of Rawalpindi, Pakistan, under the patronage of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Gul, who also goes by the alias of Sajjad Ahmed Sheikh, has been a planner of a number of terror attacks, including targeted killings between 2020 and 2024 in Central and South Kashmir, grenade attacks in Central Kashmir in 2023, ambush of J&K police personnel in Bijbehra in Anantnag, Gagangir, Z-Morh Tunnel attack in Ganderbal. The NIA had designated him a terrorist in April 2022, with a reward of Rs 10 lakh. The official said that during the investigation into the Pahalgam attack, links and some communications have been traced back to Gul. Used by Pakistan's external snooping agency ISI as a Kashmiri face of the local Punjabi-dominated Lashkar-e-Taiba, Sheikh was educated in Srinagar and did his MBA from Bangalore, later pivoting to a lab technician course in Kerala. 4Continued on | P8 4Continued on | P8 4Continued on | P8 Despite denying links to terrorism, Pakistan’s hypocrisy was exposed on Wednesday as its soldiers attended funeral prayers of terrorists killed in an Indian missile strike in Muridke — with coffins wrapped in Pak national flag Opposition unites around response Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI Opposition parties on Wednesday hailed the Indian Armed forces in one voice after they carried out precision strikes against terrorist organisations in Pakistan and Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir in response to the Pahalgam terror attack. While some of the leaders were brief in their appreciation or just saluted the nation and the forces, others went on to state what they stood for. Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi led the Congress in declaring that he was “Proud of our Armed Forces.” He also wrote “Jai Hind!” along with it in his post on “X”. His sister and Congress general secretary and MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was more elaborate and posted: “We are extremely proud of our army. Our brave soldiers protect our freedom and integrity. May God protect them and give them immense courage to face challenges with patience and bravery. Jai Hind.” Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, who had only recently criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not preventing the Pahalgam attack despite intelligence inputs, stated that “India has an unflinching national policy against all forms of terrorism emanating from Pakistan and PoK. We are extremely proud of our Indian Armed Forces who have stuck terror camps in Pakistan and PoK. We applaud their resolute resolve and courage.” 4Continued on | P8 ALL-PARTY MEET TODAY In the wake of Operation Sindoor, the Centre has convened an all-party meeting on Thursday at 11 a.m. to brief the nation's political leadership on the strategic strikes. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju made the announcement on Wednesday and wrote on X, "Govt has called an All Party leaders meeting at 11 am on 8th May, 2025 at Committee Room: G074, in the Parliament Library Building, Parliament Complex in New Delhi." Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan and formally briefed her on the operation. Indoreans stand still, switch off vehicle lights to observe 12-minute voluntary black out on Wednesday as part of mock drill Coaching centre owner held in Love Jihad case 24 obscene videos found FP News Service MORENA In a shocking revelation, police nabbed Aslam Khan alias Abhi, owner of a computer coaching centre named Abhi Insaniyat in Jiwajiganj, on charges of blackmail, sexual exploitation, and Love Jihad. The arrest followed com- plaints from a victim’s family and members of the Hindu Jagran Manch. Khan allegedly posed as a Hindu named ‘Abhi’ and lured female students into his institute by showcasing his supposed devotion to Lord Shiva. Daily writings of Shiv Mahima on the classroom blackboard and multiple photos of Lord Shiva on the premises were used as a cover to mislead students and parents. Police recovered 24 objectionable NEW DELHI Aslam Khan alias Abhi