LeT Commander Musa Killed in Budgam, Group of Four Wiped Out

Indian security forces neutralised Musa, also called Asif Fauji, a senior commander of Lashkar-e-Taiba, in an intelligence-led joint operation in Jammu and Kashmir. The Ministry of Home Affairs said the encounter took place at Gurwatkalan, in the area of Khansahib police station in Budgam district.

How the operation came together

Security forces had been after Musa for a long time. A plan naming every stakeholder was drawn up once technical and human intelligence came in about where he was and how he moved. The encounter formed part of a long-sustained operation called Operation Sheruwali, which began in May 2026.

A group of four now gone

With this killing the whole group of four senior Lashkar-e-Taiba commanders who had been active in the union territory since 2022 has been neutralised. The other three fell in separate encounters:

Attacks laid at the group's door

The four commanders were held responsible for a string of attacks over four years. Among them were the Kandi attack of May 2023, the Halan attack of August 2023, the DKG attack of December 2023, the Shahsitar attack of May 2024, the Shiv Khori attack of June 2024, the Gagangir attack of October 2024, the Bootapathri attack of October 2024 and the Baisaran attack of April 2025.

Why it matters

The Ministry of Home Affairs described the killing as a serious blow to the Lashkar-e-Taiba network in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It credited the result to counter-terrorism work carried out in close coordination over the past few years by the Jammu and Kashmir Police, the Indian Army and the Central Armed Police Forces. For an aspirant, the point to hold on to is the pattern: intelligence, both technical and human, feeding a joint operation run by the state police, the army and the central forces together, rather than any one of them acting alone.