Jaipur: Neeraj Udhwani, a 33-year-old resident of Jaipur, tragically lost his life in the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on April 22. His body is expected to arrive in Jaipur later tonight.
Neeraj lived in Forest View Residency, Model Town (Malviya Nagar), and was vacationing in Kashmir with his wife when terrorists opened fire on tourists in Baisaran Valley, a popular tourist spot. While Neeraj was killed, his wife was at the hotel during the attack and escaped unhurt, quickly informing the family about the tragedy.
Employed in the UAE, Neeraj had returned to India for a vacation. Following a wedding in Shimla, he traveled with his wife to Kashmir. The couple had celebrated their marriage two years ago at Bhanwar Singh Palace in Pushkar.
Neeraj’s uncle, Dinesh Udhwani, revealed that the family is devastated by the loss. His elder brother, Kishore Udhwani, an income tax inspector, had just arrived in Jaipur with his wife four days before the incident. Their mother, Jyoti Udhwani, is receiving support from relatives and neighbors, while their father, Pradeep Udhwani, passed away ten years ago.
The attack on Tuesday claimed at least 26 lives and left over 17 people injured, impacting tourists from several states, including Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, as well as individuals from Nepal and the UAE. Additionally, two local residents were among the casualties.
This incident is the deadliest in Jammu and Kashmir since the February 14, 2019 Pulwama attack, which resulted in the deaths of 40 CRPF personnel, an attack claimed by the Pakistan-based terrorist organization Jaish-e-Mohammed.
Sadly, this is not the first targeting of tourists from Jaipur; on June 10, 2024, four individuals from the city, including a child, were killed in an attack in Jammu and Kashmir. Furthermore, on May 18, 2024, a Jaipur couple, Farah Khan (35) and Tabrez Khan (38), was shot at a resort in the Yaner area of Pahalgam.
