India

IPS Officer Sandeep Chaudhary Receives Kendriya Grihmantri Dakshata Padak for Investigation Work

By Swati Gandhi

The Ministry of Home Affairs announced on Saturday that IPS officer Sandeep Chaudhary, who led the National Investigation Agency’s probe into the April 2025 Pahalgam terror attack, has been awarded the Kendriya Grihmantri Dakshata Padak in the investigation category. Chaudhary is one of 490 personnel from states, Union Territories, Central Armed Police Forces and Central Police Organisations honoured for 2026. The award, presented annually on 31 October to mark the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, recognises excellent work, promotes high professional standards and boosts morale. While the award list does not specify the case for which Chaudhary was selected, the MHA noted his contribution in the investigation category.

Chaudhary, a 2012‑batch IPS officer of the AGMUT cadre, is a Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIGP) and was promoted to the rank on a pro‑forma basis effective 1 January. He is among 123 officers and personnel recognised for outstanding investigative work.

Earlier in his career, Chaudhary has been noted for dedicating two hours each morning to help students prepare for competitive examinations. He launched “Operation Dreams” as a Superintendent of Police in South Jammu, offering free coaching from his office chamber to 10 candidates aspiring to become sub‑inspectors.

The Pahalgam attack on 22 April 2025 killed 26 men, including 25 Indians and a Nepalese, and injured about 17 people. It was described as the country’s worst civilian attack since the 2008 Mumbai attacks. India responded with “Operation Sindoor” in May, targeting nine sites of terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan‑occupied Kashmir. Pakistan retaliated, leading to a four‑day military confrontation that ended on 10 May.

Following the attack, the NIA took over the investigation and filed two chargesheets before the Special NIA Court in Jammu. The first chargesheet, submitted on 15 December 2025, was 1,597 pages long and named seven accused, including Pakistani handler Sajid Jatt and three Pakistani terrorists—Faisal Jatt alias Suleman Shah, Habeeb Tahir alias Jibran and Hamza Afghani. The three terrorists were killed during Operation Mahadev on 28 July 2025 in Lidwas, near Srinagar. The chargesheet also named local facilitators Parvaiz Ahmad and Bashir Ahmad Jothar, who were arrested for sheltering the terrorists and providing logistical assistance.

In July, the NIA filed a supplementary chargesheet naming Hafiz Saeed, the founder of Lashkar‑e‑Taiba, in his individual capacity and as the organisation’s commander, and identified the Resistance Front as a proxy in the alleged conspiracy. This led to an open‑dated non‑bailable warrant against Saeed.