Journalism of Courage
This is an archive article published on March 28, 2021
Two militants, soldier killed in gunfight in South Kashmir
Police said that on Saturday evening, a joint team of J&K Police, Army and paramilitary forces cordoned off the Wangam village of Shopian after receiving inputs on the presence of militants in the village.
As the joint team of forces zeroed in on the target, the trapped militants opened fire triggering a gunfight.
(Representational)
Two militants and a soldier were killed in a fierce gunfight in South Kashmir on Saturday night. Two soldiers were also injured in the incident.
Sunday’s encounter was the third gunfight in Shopian, a militant hotbed, in recent days. Security personnel recovered another American made M4 Carbine from the slain militants.
Police said that on Saturday evening, a joint team of J&K Police, Army and paramilitary forces cordoned off the Wangam village of Shopian after receiving inputs on the presence of militants in the village.
As the joint team of forces zeroed in on the target, the trapped militants opened fire triggering a gunfight.
“During the search operation, after the presence of terrorists was ascertained, they were given an opportunity to surrender,” J&K Police said in an official release, adding, “However, they fired indiscriminately upon the joint search party, which was retaliated leading to an encounter”.
In the initial burst of fire from the militants, three army personnel were injured. While the injured soldiers were rushed to hospital for treatment, one of them, identified as Pinku Kumar, succumbed.
Two militants were also killed in the encounter that lasted till midnight. Police have identified the slain militants as Anaytullah Sheikh of Ramnagri Shopian and Adil Ahmad Malik of Danwathpora Kokernag.
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Police said Sheikh, affiliated to Hizbul Mujahideen, was “active since 2018 and had recently infiltrated from Pakistan”, while Malik, a Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) recruit, had joined the militant ranks six months ago.
Police said apart from the M4 Carbine, an AK 47 rifle and a pistol were also recovered from the dead militants.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
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