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| Two civilians, one Jawan, 3 terrorists killed in day long encounter | | Pak terrorists strike in Kathua | | Militants sneaked into Indian Territory two hours before the terror attack
Asif Iqbal Naik
JAMMU, Mar 28: Pakistan sponsored terrorist struck in Kathua today morning killing two civilians and one Army personnel. Three dreaded terrorists were also eliminated by security forces in over 10 hour long gun battle.
This was second major terror attack in Kathua district after September 26, 2013, when three heavily-armed Pakistani terrorists had attacked a police station in Hiranagar and an Army camp in the border districts of Kathua and Samba, killing 10 people, including four policemen and an Army officer.
As per the details, the militants first struck at Dayala Chak area, few kilometers away from Indo-Pakistan border at 4.20 AM today intercepted a Bolero vehicle bearing registration No. JK21 A-7670 killing one civilian identified as Ajeet Singh and injuring three others identified as Gurpreet Singh son of Satnam Singh, Sahib Singh and Kamaljeet Singh both sons of Prem Nath resident of Gurdaspur Punjab, besides the militants kidnapped the driver of vehicle Tarseem Singh whose hand cuffed and throat slit body was later found at nearby encounter site. However, senior police officer of Jammu and Kashmir police ruled out throat slitting and said that Tarseem Singh was subjected to torture by the militants resulting into his death.
After separating driver of the vehicle, Tarseem Singh, the terrorists sprayed bullets on other passengers and fled in the vehicle. This left one person Ajeet Singh a resident of Vijaypur in Jammu, dead and three others injured.
As soon as the incident took place, the injured persons sounded alert and accordingly police control room was informed at around 4.35 AM and the matter was brought into the notice of senior police and army officers who without wasting any time launched a massive search operation in the area to trace out the militants. After sealing all and exit points leading to Jammu, the security forces established a contact with the militants at around 5.30 AM in the Janglote area near an army installation in Kathua and resulted into heavy exchange of firing from both the sides as militants were firing with automatic weapons and hurling grenades at army and security forces resulting into the death of army personnel identified by the police as Lance Naik V Antony of 111 Army Unit of Rocket Launcher Artillery. Three army personnel of the same unit were injured in this terror attack and are being treated at army hospital.
Janglote is an Artillery Rocket Regiment with nearly 700 soldiers present in the Army camp at the time of the militant attack and the camp is off the Jammu-Pathankot National Highway.
Soon the vehicle carrying the militants was intercepted by the Army near a private college in Kalibari-Janglote belt of Kathua district resulting in fresh firing which continued till 4PM in the evening.
The injured were shifted to Government Medical College Hospital Jammu, beside a high alert was sounded by the security agencies in entire Jammu region, various trains were stopped at Jammu railway station and at Punjab border, besides traffic on Jammu-Pathankot National Highway was also suspended to prevent loss of civilian lives and property. The Jammu-Punjab border was also sealed and heavy security has been deployed at Army camps and important places in Kathua, Samba and Jammu districts.
In first assault, the security forces at around 12.30 PM manage to kill two terrorists. After brief lull in the firing, the 3rd terrorist who had taken shelter in an under construction building once again opened fire on the security forces which was retaliated and the terrorist was killed later.
Despite bad weather, army helicopters were pressed into service to locate the vehicle which was finally spotted in nearby rivulet outside the army camp. The sources informed the "Early Times" that the terrorists involved in today's terror attack might have sneaked into Indian territory through Tarlah Nallah to carry out a suicide attack ahead of the Lok Sabha polls. The same route was used by terrorists to enter the state on September 26 last year in which 10 people including Lt Col Bikramjeet Singh were killed. The identification of the killed militants is yet to be ascertained. Three AK-47, 27 magazines of AK, 3 pistols, 6 magazines of pistols, 3 pouches and several rounds of AK-47 were recovered from the position of the salin militants.
Meanwhile the three Pakistani terrorist who unleashed a blood bath in Kathua today manage to sneak into Indian Territory nearly two hours before striking at a private vehicle at Dayal Chak killing one civilian.
The sources informed the "Early Times", the slain militants manage to sneak into Indian side in between 2 AM to 3 AM from Hiranagar border. The sources said that after entering into Indian side by taking the benefit of darkness, these militants hide themselves adjacent to nearby National Highway and after seeing the Bloro vehicle coming, the appeared on National Highway and stopped the vehicle. After stopping the vehicle, these militants opened volley of gun shots on occupants on board of the vehicle. Later the militant drive the vehicle up to nearby army camp where they were intercepted by the security forces. The intelligence sources said that various security agencies has already sounded an alert to both centre as well as the state about possible terror strike in Kathua District ahead of BJP Prime Minister Candidate Narindra Modi Public rally at Hiranagar stadium and nomination filling rally of Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad in which Chief Minister Omar Abdullah as well as top cabinet and state politician participated. The sources added that due to tight vigil during Modi and Azad's Kathua rally, the militants fail to sneak into Indian side. The sources further elaborated that the intelligence agencies termed the incident as security lapse on part of the security forces responsible for maintaining guard on borders. However detail inquiry has been order to ascertain the fact behind today's terror attack. |
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