Rajnath Singh not to celebrate Holi to mourn Pulwama attack

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said he will not celebrate the festival of Holi this year in the wake of Pulwama terrorist attack. As many as 40 CRPF personnel were killed in the attack which was orchestrated by Pakistan-based terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district.

CRPF has also decided to skip Holi celebrations this year to mourn Pulwama attack. During an event to the mark 80th raising day of the force at its group centre here, CRPF Director General (DG) R R Bhatnagar also said the influence of left-wing extremists or Naxals has reduced by 40 per cent and only a few areas in the country are now affected.

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The CRPF personnel were killed when their convoy was targeted on the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway on February 14. The convoy comprised 78 buses in which around 2500 personnel were travelling from Jammu to Srinagar.

Later India launched a pre-emptive, anti-terror air strike on terror launch pads in Pakistan's Balakot. Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale had said on February 26 that the airstrike resulted in the elimination of "a large number of terrorists". Pakistan, however, has denied time and again India's claims of having inflicted casualties at the JeM training camp.