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| Three Jaish militants, 2 Army soldiers killed in Shopian encounter | | | Jehangir Rashid
SRINAGAR, Apr 25: In one of the deadliest encounters in the recent past three militants and two army soldiers got killed during a daylong encounter in South Kashmir's Shopian district. The slain militants are said to be locals owing allegiance to Jaish-e-Mohammad.
Reports reaching here said that early in the morning police and security forces received inputs that some militants are hiding in the Karewa, Manloo village of South Kashmir's Shopian district. A cordon was laid around the village and searches were started in order to flush out the militants.
As the police and security forces personnel started to carry out the search operations there were fired upon by the militants hiding in the village. The militants who were hiding inside a house fired upon the police and security forces personnel with the same being retaliated. In no time a volley of bullets was fired by militants forcing the police and security forces personnel to take positions.
During the ensuing gun-fight a militant got killed initially while as his two accomplices managed to engage the police and security forces personnel for a long time. Later on both the militants got killed and the encounter ended before the onset of dusk. A soldier of the army identified as Rakesh also got injured during the encounter.
Police and security forces personnel used load speakers and asked militants to surrender but they refused the offer and fired volley of bullets towards them. The army fired mortar shells towards a two story residential house belonging to Farooq Ahmad Khan. The holed up militants tried their best to break the cordon but could not do so due to the heavy presence of police and security forces personnel.
Identity of the two militants has been established and they are Muhammad Asif Wani son of Abdul Razak resident of Drubgam-Pulwama and Shabir Ahmed, a resident of Rajouri.
Soon after the firing ended, clashes between police & security forces personnel and locals erupted near Narpora after people from Drubgam and its adjacent villages tried to move towards encounter site after the reports that a local militant from Drubgam had been killed in the encounter.
DIG South Kashmir Range, Vijay Kumar said that after receiving information about presence of militants, army and Special Operations Group of Jammu & Kashmir Police launched a cordon and search operation at village Karewa.
"When we were cordoning off the village the militants fired upon the searching party that was retaliated with the same force. The encounter continued for few hours and ended with killing of all the militants," said DIG. He said that one of the militants in a bid to flee from the spot jumped from the window.
"During his escape bid the militant continuously fired upon the army and he was killed after the retaliation from police and security forces personnel," said DIG. He said that forces are on job of retrieving the bodies from debris.
Srinagar based defence spokesman Lt Colonel N N Joshi said that acting on specific information about the presence of some militants at village Karewa, Manloo, the joint team of army's 44 RR and SOG cordoned off the whole area at around 2:00 pm.
"As such the joint team of forces intensified the combing operation the militants hiding inside a residential house opened heavy fire ensuing fierce gunfight. During the gunfight all the three militants were killed and a soldier of 44 RR identified as Rakesh was injured", said the defence spokesman.
Late in the evening two army soldiers including a major were killed after a fresh fire fight broke out in the village between the security forces personnel and the lone militant. The incident took place when a militant rose out of the debris of the house, razed to rubble by a joint team of police and security forces earlier which led to the killing of three militants.
Sources said the incident took place when the joint team was carrying out the searches post the gunfight. As the security forces personnel were busy in searching the debris a militant came out of the debris of the house and started indiscriminate firing, injuring three soldiers including a major.
"Two of the soldiers sustained serious injuries in the incident. One of them identified as Major Mukund Vardarajan of 44 RR succumbed to injuries on way to 92 Base Hospital here while body of a soldier is lying near the encounter spot," said sources. The operation has been suspended owing to darkness. |
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