Source : INDIATV NEWS
The family of Muzamil, a zipline operator in Pahalgam, has defended him for saying “Allahu Akbar” before the April 22 terror attack in Baisaran that killed 26 people. Muzamil’s father said his son was scared and crying after the incident and insisted he didn’t do anything wrong.
The family of Muzamil, a zipline operator in Pahalgam accused of shouting “Allahu Akbar” during the April 22 terror attack in Baisaran meadow, has come forward in his defence, stating that he was frightened and had no malicious intent. Muzamil’s father, Abdul Aziz, told news agency ANI that his son was terrified and in tears following the incident. “Right now, Muzamil is with the police. He was very scared, he started crying at that time. He said, ‘Don’t say anything to me, something happened here,’” Aziz said.
Addressing a viral video in which Muzamil is reportedly heard shouting “Allahu Akbar,” Aziz said the phrase is a common expression of faith. “Even if the storm comes, we say Allahu Akbar. What fault do we have in this? Muzamil used to work only with the zipline; he didn’t do any other work,” he added. He maintained that Muzamil was simply doing his job and had no role in the violence.
Earlier in the day, Congress MP Pramod Tiwari demanded a thorough investigation into the viral video that surfaced online showing a tourist on a zipline in Pahalgam. In the video, the tourist alleged the operator shouted “Allahu Akbar” moments before gunfire erupted. “This is a matter of investigation… The truth should come out. No security force was deployed there, despite the expected tourist rush,” Tiwari said.
The video was shared by Rishi Bhatt, a tourist from Gujarat, who was ziplining at the time of the attack. Speaking to ANI in Ahmedabad, Bhatt claimed, “Nine people ziplined before me, and the operator didn’t say a word. When I was on the zipline, he shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ thrice, and then the firing began… He looked like a regular Kashmiri.”
Bhatt said he realised about 20 seconds into his ride that a terrorist attack was underway. “I saw five to six people getting shot. I unlatched my belt, jumped down, took my wife and son, and started running. We hid in a depression in the ground with others,” he recounted.
The attack killed 26 people, including 25 Indian nationals and one Nepalese citizen, and left several injured. In response, the central government has vowed to bring both the attackers and the conspirators to justice.
