5 CRPF men martyred in terror strike, militant killed, 5 injured

SRINAGAR: In a daring broad daylight strike, two militants, believed to be from Jaish-e-Mohammed group, struck in a busy road in Anantnag district of South Kashmir Wednesday killing five CRPF personnel and injuring three others, even as a Station House Officer of Jammu and Kashmir police and a civilians also sustained injuries.

One of the militants—believed to be on a suicide mission was also killed in the crossfire, whereas the other one managed to escape.

The incident took place in the afternoon when motorcycle-borne militants fired at a CRPF patrol party at Khanabal-Pahalgham stretch, famously known as KP Road, killing one personnel on the spot and wounding few others.

A joint team of the bravo company of CRPF's 116th battalion and state police were deployed for a picket duty in the area when the attack took place around 4:55 pm.

The patrolling party of the CRPF fought the militants and 5 CRPF personnel attained martyrdom while repulsing the said terror attack, a police spokesman said.

Initial reports said that three troopers were killed while two more attained martyrdom at 92 Base hospital, where three more injured CRPF men are undergoing treatment.

Immediately additional forces, led by Station House Officer of Saddar police station in Anantnag Arshad Ahmed, reached the encounter spot but had to face indiscriminate firing from the militants who also hurled grenades at them.

In the ensuring gunfight, one militant was killed while another is believed to have escaped, the officials said.

“In the retaliatory action, one of the militants was gunned down on the spot. His body was retrieved and an AK-47 was found from him. From the materials recovered, it is found that the dead militant was a foreigner,” spokesman said.

SHO Ahmed’s condition is stated to be critical and he was shifted to Srinagar for treatment, he said.

The area was soon cordoned and search in the area was going on till late night.

“Police has registered a case in this regard and investigation is in progress,” the spokesman said.

The martyrs have been identified as Assistant Sub Inspector (ASI) Nirod Sarma, ASI Ramesh Kumar, and three Constables-- Satendra Kumar, Mahesh Kumar Kushwa and Sandeep Yadav.

The attacks comes less than three weeks before the commencement of the annual Amaranth yatra to the cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas.

Jammu and Kashmir Police had shared an intelligence input about a possible terror strike on security forces around the general bus stand which is located on KP road.

Though Al-Umar Mujahideen, a defunct terror group, has claimed responsibility for the strike, officials, however, said that it was a handiwork of Jaish-e-Mohammed.

Pilgrims travelling to the cave shrine have to pass through the stretch of the road where Wednesday's attack took place. The yatra is scheduled to begin on July 1 and culminate on August 15.

A major terror attack took place on Amarnath pilgrims in July 2017 when eight of them were killed by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists who opened indiscriminate firing on their bus at Khanabal.

Director General Police, J&K, Dilbag Singh visited 92 Base Hospital Srinagar this evening and enquired about the health of personnel injured in the Anantnag terror attack.

He met the doctors treating the injured and impressed for all possible treatment for their early recovery.

The DGP also met the CRPF and a police jawan injured in Sopore encounter.

DGP was accompanied by DIG CKR V.K. Birdhi and SP East Srinagar. Earlier IGP Kashmir S.P. Pani visited the hospital to know the welfare of injured personnel.

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