On 22 April, at least 26 people were killed in a terrorist attack in the beautiful Baisaran Valley near Pahalgam in Anantnag district. This was one of the deadliest terror attacks in Kashmir in recent times, specifically targeting tourists. According to survivors, three to four men dressed in army uniforms emerged from the dense deodar forests around 2 PM and opened indiscriminate fire on civilians enjoying the lush green spot.
The Resistance Front (TRF), a shadow organisation of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed responsibility for the attack, as reported by central agency sources. The Indian government has taken several major actions against Pakistan following the incident.
Indian Navy Lieutenant Vinay Narwal, who was on a trip to Kashmir with his wife Himanshi, was among those killed in the attack. The couple had gotten married just days earlier, on 16 April. The incident sparked widespread outrage and condemnation across the country, especially after a heartbreaking photo of Himanshi sitting beside Vinay Narwal’s body went viral.
As the nation struggled to come to terms with the tragedy, several media houses, websites, and social media users, including some politicians, began circulating a video of a dancing couple. It was claimed that the video showed Vinay Narwal and his wife Himanshi, labelling it their "last video" together.
However, after the video went viral, a couple named Yashika Sharma and Ashish Sahravat posted a video on Instagram clarifying that the 19-second clip actually featured them. In the video, Yashika made it clear that she was very much alive and had never been to Kashmir. She also expressed confusion over how the media circulated their video with such a misleading claim, firmly denying that the individuals in the clip were Vinay Narwal and his wife Himanshi.
Yashika went on to question the media, saying, “I don’t know where this video came from. I don’t understand how the Indian press operates. We’ve been receiving calls since morning, and my family and I are extremely worried. We offer our condolences to the victim’s family, but we are alive, and we are not those people. Just imagine how the people involved in this tragedy must feel, seeing this video being shared in their name.” She also urged Instagram users to report the video.