New Delhi, Apr 24 (PTI) Congress general secretary Ghulam Ahmad Mir on Thursday said the Pahalgam terror attack raises serious questions of security and intelligence failure and asked why the checks that are usually in place around the tourist spot were not there on the day of the incident.

In an interview with PTI, the Congress Legislature Party leader in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly said there are serious issues of security and intelligence failure in the minds of the common people, and the government must answer these.

“This has happened in a totally unexpected manner and place. The tourism season was at its peak…. there is no support among the people for such acts,” he said.

“It happened in a place where no one could have imagined. There are many tourist destinations, but Pahalgam is considered the most popular and the most secure among them. It is also on the route of the Amarnath Yatra. There is a three-tier security cover during the yatra,” he said.

There used to be checks and balances in place in this area, but why it was not there on the day of the incident is a matter of concern, Mir said.

“Tourists said that there were no checks. There was no visibility of security forces in Baisaran Valley; there should have been J&K police at least. Previously, there was patrolling by the army and CRPF deployment and J&K police as well…majority of the people are raising this issue and therefore as a party we are raising this,” the Congress general secretary said.

He also claimed that the language used by terrorists in the videos doing the rounds is Pashto and is not a dialect spoken anywhere in Kashmir, he said.

On the government downgrading diplomatic ties with Pakistan, Mir asked whether these steps will ensure peace and whether they will be implemented or not is to be seen.

“Right now they are timely, but what will be their longstanding implications is to be seen,” he added.

In Tuesday’s terror attack in Baisaran near Kashmir’s resort town of Pahalgam, 26 people, mostly tourists, were gunned down. PTI ASK RHL