Early Times Report
JAMMU, Jan 25: An alert was sounded in Rajouri, Jammu, Reasi and Udhampur districts after the employee of a petrol at Nowshera apprised army this morning of the suspicious movement of two persons, who were in army fatigues and carried weapons, in a white Tavera car. The car arrived at a petrol pump at Rajal on the Jammu-Poonch highway at about 1 am. According to its employee, the car occupants directed him to fill diesel worth Rs 2,000. While filling diesel, he also spotted a weapon hidden inside the jacket of one of the two occupants. He approached a Road Opening Party (ROP) of army early in the morning and apprised it of the matter. The ROP head immediately spoken to senior army officers. Later, Police Control Room, Jammu, was also alerted. A message was flashed out and on the directions of senior police officers, Nowshera police picked up the petrol pump employee for questioning. While he could not provide further leads, police sounded a high alert in Rajouri, Jammu, Reasi and Udhampur districts, police sources said. The alert was sounded to foil any attempt of the anti-national elements to strike on Republic Day eve, said a senior police officer. While police were busy in working out a strategy to locate the white Tavera, another incident of a white car breaking a police naka at Sunderbani at about 2.40 pm alerted them further. "After breaking the police barrier, the car sped away towards Jammu," sources said. "While none of the naka party members could note down the car's registration number, a cop was able to read only 0817 written on the number plate," the sources added. Another alert was sounded after this incident which was also brought to the notice of district police chiefs of Reasi, Udhampur and Jammu, said A K Atri, DIG of Rajouri-Poonch range. "Yes, a white car has breached the police naka at Sunderbani and an alert has been sounded in the area" said SDPO, Nowshera. "The car could be part of the Army convoy which was crossing the police naka at Sunderbani as army also hires private vehicles to carry officers and soldiers. However, an alert had been sounded and police were waiting for the response from Jammu and Reasi district police chiefs," the DIG said. Sources said that the white car that breached the police naka at Sunderbani immediately after the army convoy was a Tavera. Police were not taking the incident lightly and were worried about the movement of some suspicious persons in the district, said SSP while talking to reporters and added that the patrol pump employee was a habitual drunkard and hence couldn't be trusted fully. Army had confirmed the white car, which was following the army convoy, had been hired by them, sources said. |
