JK: Poonch mourns 13 civilian deaths, condemns Pakistan's shelling targeting religious sites

Poonch (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], May 8 (ANI): The civilians of the Poonch area condemned the Pakistani army attacking civilian targets in the cross border firing. mourned the loss of innocent lives killed yesterday.
On Wednesday, thirteen civilians lost their lives in Poonch while a total of 59 people, 44 of them in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir, have sustained injuries due to ceasefire violations by Pakistan along the Line of Control (LoC), according to the External Affairs Ministry.
The visuals showed extensive damage incurred on a temple, a gurudwara, and a mosque in Poonch, following cross-border shelling by Pakistan in the wake of "Operation Sindoor."



President of District Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee, Narinder Singh, said, "Poonch saw very heavy shelling yesterday... Bhai Amrik Singh, a raagi, in our gurudwara, died in the shelling; he was in his shop located on the ground floor of his house when this happened... A shell hit the gurdwara as well, but there was no one present here... One Hindu child has been killed, four Sikhs have been killed, and many from the Muslim community have also lost their lives in the shelling... People have started migrating in large numbers..."
Vice Principal of Jamia Zia-ul-Uloom Poonch also criticised the targeted attack on religious structures.
"Shelling occurred all day yesterday in Poonch, and the whole district was affected by it. Whenever such situations arose, our city always stayed safe. But now, people have lost their lives in large numbers. Religious structures have also been targeted... In this building also, our Ustaad was killed in the shelling. His six children were also present here at the time," he said.
Swami Krishnanand, head priest of Gita Bhawan, said that they are facing tough conditions due to a sudden attack post 'Operation Sindoor'.
"Demons have bombarded our town and our temple. Fortunately, the shell did not hit our main idol. It happened at 9 o'clock when there was no one around; had the timing been a little off, there would have been many casualties... Our water tanks have broken, and there is water everywhere. We are facing tough conditions," he said. (ANI)