At least 39 held in Assam for 'defending Pakistan' after Pahalgam attack

Two more persons have been apprehended in Assam for "defending Pakistan on Indian soil", taking the total number of arrested people to 39 since the Pahalgam terror attack last month, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.

Sarma also said the two were arrested from Hojai and South Salmara-Mankachar districts.

"#Update on Crackdown against traitors for defending Pakistan on Indian soil... A total of 39 Anti Nationals put behind bars till now," the chief minister said on X on Saturday night.

Earlier, opposition AIUDF MLA Aminul Islam was arrested on sedition charges for allegedly defending Pakistan and its complicity in the Pahalgam terror attack. 

On Friday, Sarma threatened to break the legs of those who raised the 'Pakistan zindabad' slogan in the aftermath of the Jammu and Kashmir terror attack.

Addressing a campaign rally for the panchayat elections, he appealed to the people to pray and give strength to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Indian Army so that Pakistani terrorists hiding anywhere in the world can be brought to justice.

Terrorists struck Baisaran, a prime tourist location, in Pahalgam in south Kashmir on April 22, killing at least 26 people, mostly tourists, and injuring several others.