In a display of immense courage, a young Kashmiri tourist guide risked his own life to save children from a visiting group during a deadly terrorist attack in Pahalgam on Tuesday. Nazakat Ahmad Shah, 28, was guiding a group of 11 tourists — comprising four couples and three children — from the Manendragarh-Chirmiri-Bharatpur region of Chhattisgarh when chaos erupted. Recounting the harrowing experience over the phone, Shah revealed that his cousin lost his life in the attack, which left 26 people dead. One of the tourists, Arvind Agrawal, shared a heartfelt message on social media along with photos with Shah, writing, “You risked your life to protect ours. We can never repay the debt we owe you, Nazakat Bhai.” According to Agrawal’s Facebook profile, he is affiliated with the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, the youth wing of the BJP. The tourist group also included the families of Kuldeep Sthapak, Shivansh Jain, and Happy Wadhavan. Shah, who spends winters selling shawls in Chirmiri, had known these families for years.
