Pahalgam terror attack: Two from Andhra Pradesh shot dead by militants

Chandramouli. Photo: Special Arrangement

A retired employee of State Bank of India J.S. Chandramouli — a resident of Visakhapatnam and Somisetti Madhusudhan Rao — senior architect at a software company, are among the 26 tourists and civilians, who were shot dead by the militants in Jammu and Kashmir’s (J&K’s) Pahalgam on Tuesday (April 22, 2025) evening.

The 68-year-old banker had gone to J&K as a tourist along with his wife and two other families. In total, six of them had gone to Kashmir, said his brother-in-law B.V.S. Nageswara Rao, who is the DSP of Anti-Corruption Bureau, A.P. Police, posted in Visakhapatnam.

According to the reports, there were six of them, and immediately after the terror attack, people ran helter-skelter to protect themselves from the fire opened by the terrorists, who claim to be from The Resistance Front, an off-shoot of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

In the melee, my brother-in-law had gone missing and till late in the night his body was not traced and identified. “We initially expected that he might be injured and was shifted to a hospital, as he was separated from the group and his phone was not reachable. We could reach my sister J. Naga Mani and she and the remaining members of the group are safe,” said Mr. Nageswara Rao.

‘Chandramouli was a very social and helpful man’

Chandramouli, who is fondly remembered as Chandra or Mouli by his former colleagues, say that he was an affable man who was always ready to help others and even addressed the grievances of the customers with a smile.

He was a very social and helpful man and was the secretary of our Pensioners Club. He would be the first to participate in rallies such as Pinkathon or anything that concerned social or environmental issues. He was also an avid traveller and loved to explore new places, reminisced Ramanamurthy Naidu, former SBI manager and his friend and colleague.

He is survived by two daughters and both are in the U.S. In fact, one of his daughters left for the U.S. on April 16 and he and his wife had left for J&K on April 18, said Mr. Ramanamurthy.

Chandramouli’s body is being despatched by special flight and is expected to land at Visakhapatnam International Airport at around 10.30 p.m. on Wednesday (April 23).

It is also learnt that CM Chandrababu Naidu is expected to arrive in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday (April 23) to receive the mortal remains of Chandramouli.

According to family sources the final rites are likely to take place on Friday, after his daughters fly down from the U.S.

Madhusudhan Rao settled in Bengaluru

Somisetti Madhusudhan Rao, the other tourist who was killed from A.P., was working as a senior architect at software company IBM in Bengaluru.

He had gone to Kashmir with his family on a vacation and became a victim to the militants’ gunfire.

He was a native of Byta Kummari Vari Street in Kavali town of SPSR Nellore district.

Madhusudhan Rao settled in Bengaluru, a few years ago. He is survived by wife, Kamakshi, a son and a daughter.

His dead body is being shifted to Chennai in a flight, and it may reach Kavali by Wednesday (April 23) evening where the last rites will be performed.