CISF officer, 2 terrorists killed in Jammu gunfight
An assistant sub-inspector (ASI) of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) was also killed while 10 security personnel were injured in the pre-dawn gunfight which came two days before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the region, police said.
A purported attempt by Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) to carry out a suicide attack near Sunjuwan military station in Jammu was foiled after two terrorists were killed in an encounter in the early hours of Friday, police said.
An assistant sub-inspector (ASI) of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) was also killed while 10 security personnel were injured in the pre-dawn gunfight which came two days before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the region, they added.
Modi is scheduled to visit Palli village of Samba on National Panchayati Raj Day on April 24. This will be his first visit to the region ever since the abrogation of Article 370 – that gave Jammu & Kashmir a special status, and bifurcated the state into two Union territories – on August 5, 2019.
Initial investigation revealed that the terrorists had entered the outskirts of Jammu city from the international border in R S Pura sector and were residing in a locality close to the military camp, an official familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity. They were apparently moving towards the Army camp when they were spotted by guards who were changing duties at a joint check post, the official added.
Around the same time, a CISF bus carrying 15 personnel at Jalalabad near the camp was proceeding towards the Jammu airport. Apparently, in a knee-jerk reaction at around 3.45 am, the two terrorists lobbed a grenade towards the bus and sprayed it with bullets before escaping back into the nearby locality, prompting the security forces to lay a cordon around the area, the official said.
A senior CISF officer said ASI SP Patel was killed in the firing by the terrorists.
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Additional director general of police (ADGP) (Jammu) Mukesh Singh said the Special Operations Group and Central Reserve Paramilitary Force launched a joint search operation to trace the terrorists.
The gunfight began when the terrorists opened fire on the search party, the official cited above said. As the CISF personnel retaliated, the terrorists entered the house of a civilian, Mahommad Anwar Hussain, for shelter but were eliminated by the forces, the official added.
The encounter site is around 20 km away from the venue of Modi’s upcoming event.
The injured CISF personnel were rushed to the Government Medical College Hospital in Jammu. Medical superintendent Dr ADS Manhas said while six personnel were discharged after first aid, four were undergoing treatment. “The four had to undergo some surgical procedures. One of them has been kept in the ICU but all of them are stable,” Dr Manhas said.
Among those injured were head constable Balraj Singh, special police officer Sahil Sharma, head constable Pramod Patra, constable Amir Soran, constable Bittal and head constable SK Balian.
“The terrorists appeared to be fidayeens (a term used for suicide bombers) from Pakistan to disrupt the Prime Minister’s rally.. As per reports, they were tasked with targeting a camp of the security forces or engaging... to inflict a lot of casualties… but the security forces foiled their bid well in time. I congratulate the security forces for the timely-action that led to swift elimination of the terrorists,” Jammu & Kashmir director general of police (DGP) Dilbag Singh said.
The terrorists were wearing suicide vests and were also equipped with a huge quantity of arms and ammunition, indicating that they had come to inflict heavy casualties on security forces, he added.
The Army’s 36 infantry bridge was close to the encounter site when the gunfight erupted on Friday morning.
“Two AK-47 rifles, arms and ammunition, besides satellite phones and some documents, were recovered from the deceased terrorists. Going by the heavy arms and ammunition and suicide vests, it appeared as though they were planning a fidayeen attack,” ADGP Singh said.
Authorities suspended mobile internet services for some time and closed schools situated near the military camp for the day.
Led by DGP Singh, top officers of the police, CISF, Army and CRPF bid farewell to CISF ASI Patel and laid wreaths at the send-off ceremony at district police lines later in the day.
“ASI Patel laid down his life while fighting terrorists. CISF party was part of a cordon operation to track down terrorists. In the firing, the ASI achieved martyrdom,” the DGP said.
Political parties in the Union territory condemned the terrorist attack.
The Jammu & Kashmir unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) raised serious concerns against the “anti-nationals that vitiate the atmosphere of peace” in Jammu.
“Encounter of terrorists in Sunjwana area today is an eye-opener about the modus operandi of terrorism spreading its tentacles in Jammu region. It is happening when the PM’s visit is just two days away and it raises serious concerns,” chief spokesperson of the party Sunil Sethi told reporters.
Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party chief Syed Mohammed Altaf Bukhari called the attack a cause of “serious concern”.
“We strongly condemn the terrorist attack in Sunjwan. It is an attempt to disturb peace in Jammu & Kashmir. The enemies of peace and stability are behind these heinous acts,” he said.
Six soldiers and three JeM terrorists were killed after the terror group attacked the Sunjuwan military station in 2018.
