New Delhi, April 23 (IANS) In the aftermath of the horrific terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's (J&K) Pahalgam that claimed 16 lives and left scores injured, Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi reached out to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, and J&K Pradesh Congress Committee President Tariq Karra to discuss the situation and extended fullest support to families of victims.

Taking to social media platform X, LoP Gandhi wrote: "Spoke with HM Amit Shah, J&K CM Omar Abdullah, and J&K PCC President Tariq Karra about the horrific Pahalgam terror attack. Received an update on the situation. The families of victims deserve justice and our fullest support."

The terror attack unfolded on Tuesday in the Baisaran Valley near the tourist town of Pahalgam.

According to eyewitness accounts, a group of heavily armed terrorists emerged from the nearby forests and opened indiscriminate fire on civilians, most of whom were tourists.

The sudden and brutal assault left at least 16 dead, including an Intelligence officer, and dozens injured.

The attack has sent shockwaves across the nation and has been met with widespread condemnation, both domestically and internationally.

As per reports, two to three terrorists wearing Army fatigues came and fired at horse-riding tourists in the Baisran area around 2.30 p.m. on Tuesday.

Baisran is a small meadow 3 to 4 km from the Pahalgam market, and tourists take horses to reach the place as there is no motorable road to it.

Initial investigations suggest that The Resistance Front, a Pakistan-based terrorist group believed to be an offshoot of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba, has claimed responsibility for the incident. This marks one of the deadliest attacks in the region in recent years.

Earlier on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Home Minister Amit Shah, who then immediately left for Kashmir to meet the Intelligence and security agencies to get an update on the terror attack.

Security agencies are also conducting investigations.