On Thursday, five army personnel were killed and another was seriously injured.
Tail:
At least 12 people were detained on Friday for questioning in connection with the deadly attack on five army men in the dense forest area of Bata Doria, while an MI helicopter, drones and sniffer dogs were pressed into action in a massive operation. I went. Perpetrators of yesterday afternoon’s attack.
The detained people are being interrogated at various levels by the security forces to ascertain the identity of the terrorist group, which is believed to be active in the region for over a year, the officials said. And possibly include a sniper.
A day after the attack, Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police Dilbag Singh along with Additional Director General of Police Mukesh Singh were camping in neighboring Rajouri district to oversee the investigation. Both the officers also inspected the spot.
A National Investigation Agency (NIA) team headed by a Deputy Inspector General rank officer was also present as the agency is likely to take over the case.
Initial reports suggest the presence of around five terrorists and the army truck is believed to have been attacked from three different sides. Following the ambush, the terrorists possibly used grenades as well as sticky bombs, which set the vehicle on fire.
Vehicular traffic remained closed on the National Highway between Bhimber Gali and Jaran Wali Gali for the second consecutive day.
Officials said the perpetrators of the attack are believed to have been present in Rajouri and Poonch for over a year and had adequate knowledge of the terrain which is quite difficult.
He told that this area is the stronghold of Rafiq Ahmed alias Rafiq Nai, the ‘Commander’ of Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force (JKGF), who is a resident of this area.
Sources said that at present three to four terrorist groups are active in Rajouri and Poonch region.
The banned terrorist group People’s Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF), a proxy wing of terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed, has claimed responsibility for the attack. There are reports that it was also the handiwork of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba group.
The entire area of Tota-Gali-Bata Doria, which has dense forests, has been cordoned off.
While drones and sniffer dogs are being used to trace the terrorists, the army also carried out recce of the area with MI-helicopters, officials said.
Five army personnel were killed and another seriously injured on Thursday when their vehicle caught fire after the attack. The jawans were from a unit of the Rashtriya Rifles deployed for anti-terrorist operations.
Top Army and Police officers laid wreaths and paid tribute to the soldiers on Friday – Havildar Mandeep Singh of village Chankoiyan, Ludhiana (Punjab), Lance Naik Kulwant Singh of Charik village, Moga district (Punjab), Talwandi village of Moga district (Punjab) Sepoy Harkishan Singh of Gurdaspur district (Punjab) and Sepoy Sevak Singh of Bagha village of Bathinda district (Punjab).
The bodies have been sent to their native places, he said.
Officials said a high alert has been sounded in the twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch amid tight vigil along the Line of Control.
Meanwhile, several people, including BJP, VHP, Rashtriya Bajrang Dal, Shiv Sena, Dogra Front and Jammu State Organisation, protested in Jammu.
In a tweet, the Army said, “Chief of Army Staff General Manoj Pandey and all ranks of the Indian Army salute the supreme sacrifice of five bravehearts of the Indian Army, Havildar Mandeep Singh, Lance Devashish Baswal, Lancer Kulwant Singh, Sept. Harkishan Singh and Sepoy Sevak Singh who laid down his life yesterday in the line of duty in Poonch Sector.” Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said that he was saddened by the martyrdom of the brave soldiers.
“His rich service to the nation will never be forgotten. My thoughts are with the bereaved families,” he said in a tweet.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
