Bhubaneswar: The moment the bullet pierced his skin, the world around her began to crumble. She watched in horror as the life drained from his eyes, her mind numb and her heart shattered into a million pieces. The man she loved, the partner she shared her life with, was slipping away, and she was powerless to stop it. The sounds of chaos and screams faded into the background as she held him close, her entire world condensed into the fleeting moments she had left with him. The memories of their life together flashed before her eyes – the laughter, the tears, the quiet moments – all silenced by the brutal reality of his departure. In that instant, her future, her present, and her past collided in a vortex of grief and despair.
For Priyadarshini Satpathy, that unbearable reality became a harsh truth in the scenic valley of Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir, where a terrorist attack turned her family holiday into a nightmare. As she stood by Prashant’s side, helpless and horrified, the bullet wound on his head took its toll, leaving her to grapple with the unimaginable loss of her partner, her rock, and her everything.
Priyadarshini’s world was shattered in an instant. As she, her husband Prashant, and their nine-year-old son were alighting from a ropeway in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir, unidentified terrorists opened fire, leaving death and destruction in their wake. In the chaos that ensued, Prashant, a tourist from Odisha’s Balasore district, sustained a fatal gunshot wound to the head, said sources.
According to Priyadarshini, the attack was sudden and unexpected. There was a sudden firing in the area by some unidentified persons. The attack claimed the lives of around 20-21 people, with many others sustaining injuries.
Priyadarshini remembered that her husband remained conscious for a considerable time after being shot, but eventually lost recognition of her. The delay in rescue operations, with Army personnel taking around one and a half hours to reach the spot, added to the distress.
It is pertinent to mention that Prashant, a resident of Ishani village in Balasore district, Odisha, had embarked on the holiday with his family, availing Leave Travel Concession (LTC). The family had arrived in Pahalgam on April 20 to enjoy the scenic beauty of the region. Tragically, their holiday turned into a nightmare, ending in Prashant’s untimely death.
The grieving wife’s account highlighted the distressing situation in the area, where such terrorist attacks can occur without warning. The incident has left Priyadarshini and her young son to cope with the loss of their loved one.
