India, April 30 -- Pragati Jagdale, wife of Santosh Jagdale-one of the tourists killed in the April 22 terror strike in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam-on Tuesday urged political leaders not to exploit the tragedy for political ends. She said survivors had directly witnessed the brutality and distinctly heard what the attackers said during the ambush.

Her appeal came a day after Maharashtra Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar sparked a controversy by questioning claims that the terrorists had asked victims about their religion before opening fire. Wadettiwar, while stating that terrorists have no caste or religion, cast doubt on the widely reported version that non-Muslims were specifically targeted in the Pahalgam massacre.

His comments drew...