‘A bad dream, I should wake up from it’: Wife of Pahalgam attack victim Manjunath Rao

SHIVAMOGGA: Pallavi Manjunath, the wife of victim Manjunath Rao, who was killed in the Pahalgam terrorist attack, said that the whole incident was a bad dream and it should not happen to any family.

During the last rites of her husband, Pallavi said, “It should be a bad dream, I should wake up from it. This should not happen to any of the family. They (terrorists) were targeting only men”. “They were targetting only men and looking at our attire, they were distinguishing who we were”, she added.

#WATCH | #PahalgamTerroristAttack | Shivamogga, Karnataka | Pallavi Manjunath, wife of victim Manjunath Rao, says, ” It should be a bad dream, I should wake up from it. This should not happen to any of the family. They (terrorists) were targeting only men…” pic.twitter.com/k0n052fPFq

— ANI (@ANI) April 24, 2025

The final rites of Manjunath Rao were held on Thursday in Shivamogga, with Union Minister Prahlad Joshi in attendance to offer his condolences.

Manjunath Rao’s death has left a void among those who knew him. His family friend Dattatreya described the loss as deeply personal. “It is very unfortunate that we lost our best friend Manjunath…The terrorists attacked him brutally…The government should take serious steps against this brutal attack by terrorists”, he said.

#WATCH | Shivamogga, Karnataka | Last respects paid to Manjunath Rao, who was killed in the #PehalgamTerroristAttack. pic.twitter.com/ZeM05jqHEA

— ANI (@ANI) April 24, 2025

Rao, who was on a family vacation as part of a tour package, was shot dead on Tuesday when terrorists opened fire on a group of tourists. As many as 26 people were killed in the dastardly attack by terrorists on tourists in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday.

Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar also condemned the attack, emphasising that the people of the country want stricter action in the matter.

“I strongly condemn this incident…The Government of India has also taken immediate action on this… It has been decided in yesterday’s (CCS) meeting that we will not have any kind of relationship with Pakistan. The central government is very alert about further action. The people of the country want that strict action should be taken in this matter,” Khattar said.

Following the attack, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) took the following measures, which included five key decisions along with the abeyance of the Indus Waters Treaty.

“The Defence/Military, Naval and Air Advisors in the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi are declared Persona Non Grata. They have a week to leave India. India will be withdrawing its own Defence/Navy/Air Advisors from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. These posts in the respective High Commissions are deemed annulled. Five support staff of the Service Advisors will also be withdrawn from both High Commissions,” Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said. He also mentioned that the Integrated Check Post at Attari will be closed with immediate effect. (ANI)