The father of Lieutenant Vinay Narwal, a young Indian Navy officer killed in the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, has made a deeply emotional statement directed at Pakistan Army chief General Asim Munir, saying he would only understand the true cost of terrorism “the day someone harms his son or daughter.”
Lieutenant Narwal, 26, had just been married on April 16 and was on his honeymoon with his wife Himanshi in Kashmir’s scenic Baisaran meadow when he was shot at point-blank range by a terrorist. The tragic image of his wife beside his lifeless body became symbolic of one of the worst terror attacks in recent memory.
“If I, an ordinary person, were given a gun and took his son or daughter, then he [General Munir] would know the pain,” said Rajesh Narwal in an interview with NDTV. “There is no peace of mind. No one in our family sleeps more than two or three hours. Medicine cannot cure this kind of loss.”
Lt Narwal, a bright officer selected through the Services Selection Board, had earned his commission in just two years and was regarded as a natural leader. His father, a student of international relations, recalled his son’s childhood fascination with the military. “He was drawn to soldiers, discipline, and courage from a young age. We built him over 30 years. He lived fearlessly and died the same way. He will always be my hero,” Rajesh said, describing the devastating psychological toll on the family.
The officer’s body was flown from Kashmir to Delhi and then to his hometown in Haryana, where Naval personnel and civilians gathered to pay their final respects. His widow performed the last rites, her grief witnessed across the nation.
The Resistance Front (TRF), widely believed to be a proxy of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), initially claimed responsibility for the attack, later retracting it amid rising tensions. Earlier this week, the United States designated TRF as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation and Specially Designated Global Terrorist.
While welcoming the move, Rajesh Narwal said symbolism was not enough. “Sanctions won’t eliminate such outfits. We must identify their ideology, funding, and backers. Mere sanctions are insufficient. These groups must be uprooted completely,” he stressed.
In what India called a “measured and proportionate response,” the Indian Army launched Operation Sindoor on July 16, targeting nine terror-linked locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), including Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Bahawalpur, Rawalakot, Bhimber, and Jhelum.
The attack on Lt Narwal and the subsequent military action have reignited debate over Pakistan’s continued support to terror groups operating in Kashmir, with grieving families calling for long-term justice, not just diplomatic gestures.
As Rajesh Narwal put it, “We have lost our son. But if there’s one thing we owe him, it’s to make sure no other parent feels this pain again.”
