J&K SIA reopens probe into 1998 Wandhama massacre

The Jammu and Kashmir State Investigation Agency has reopened its probe into the 1998 Wandhama massacre, in which 23 Kashmiri Pandits were killed, as part of a wider push to pursue long-unsolved terror-related cases from the region's peak militancy period. The renewed investigation was confirmed by officials on August 24, 2026, and follows recent action in other decades-old killings.

The massacre occurred on January 25, 1998, in Wandhama village of Ganderbal district. On that date, which coincided with the eve of Republic Day and the Islamic holy night of ShabeQadr, armed attackers reportedly disguised as Indian Army soldiers entered homes of Kashmiri Pandit families. The victims, queued up and shot dead with assault rifles, included nine women and four children. The killings were attributed to terrorists affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizbul Mujahideen. A survivor’s account describes the attackers gathering Hindu families before executing them, leaving a scene of profound shock. The case remained unsolved for many years.

The State Investigation Agency’s renewed efforts are part of a broader initiative to revisit unresolved killings from the 1980s and 1990s. Alongside the...