Congress supremo Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi cancelled his visit to Jammu and Kashmir after receiving an intelligence alert, three days before the Pahalgam attack occurred, which left 26 people, mostly non-Muslim tourists, dead on April 22.

The Congress chief made the remark while addressing the Congress’s ‘Sanvidhan Bachao Rally’ in Ranchi.

"The country witnessed a massive terror attack on April 22 and 26 innocent people lost their lives in it," he said.

Targeting the Centre, he said: "I came to know and it was published in the media as well that three days before the attack, Modi had received an intelligence report which made him cancel the visit."

BJP rejects charge

BJP spokesperson Tuhin Sinha told NDTV the Congress had no proof of such a claim.

Kharge remarked amid heightening tension between India and Pakistan over the Pahalgam terror attack incident which triggered worldwide condemnation.

Mega Drill

Meanwhile, a total of 259 locations across India, including those located in border states like Rajasthan and West Bengal, will participate in a mega security drill on Wednesday, amid escalating tension between nuclear-armed neighbours India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam attack on April 22.

This exercise is going to be the first of its kind since 1971. It was a landmark year since India and Pakistan went to war and Bangladesh was formed.

"The conduct of the exercise is planned up to the village level. This exercise aims to assess and enhance the readiness of Civil Defence mechanisms across all States and Union Territories," read the notification issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs to states, as quoted by NDTV.