Avinash Azad
Eliminating two terrorists holed up in hilly, Bajimal area, under the jurisdiction of Police Station Dharamsal in District Rajouri, five army men, including two captains-rank officers made the supreme sacrifice while fighting the enemy, in two day long operation.
According to the Defence Spokesperson, Captain MV Pranjal resident of Mangalore, Karnataka, Captain Shubham Gupta resident of Agra, Hav Abdul Majid resident of Ajote, Poonch, L/Nk Sanjay Bisht resident of Halli Padli, Nainital (Uttarakhand) and Paratrooper Sachin Laur resident of Nagaliya Giurola, Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh attained martyrdom while fighting the enemy during the operation which reportedly commenced on Tuesday, during a search conducted by Army on basis of inputs about the presence of terrorists in the area.
Meanwhile, the spokesperson of Jammu and Kashmir Police has said a top LeT commander along with an associate have been killed in an encounter at Baajimal-Kalakote, Rajouri.
“Apropos to our earlier information regarding the encounter between terrorists and Army & JK Police in Bajimaal area of Dharmsal Police Station of Kalakote Tehsil in Rajouri District, a top Commander identified as code name Qari of Lashkar-e-Taiba outfit has been gunned down in a fierce gun battle in Bajimaal area of Dharmsal in Rajouri District”, a Police spokesperson said, adding that he was active in Rajouri-Poonch along with his group from past one year. He was also believed to be the mastermind of the Dangri & Kandi attacks.
“The eliminated terrorists were sent to revive terrorism in the region and IEDs handling expert, operating & hiding from Caves & a trained Sniper. Incriminating materials including arms and ammunition were recovered from his possession”, the spokesperson said. It is pertinent to mention here that the Army and Police launched the cordon of the area the previous day on the basis of specific intelligence input.
“During the search, the terrorists hiding in the area fired on the search party, and in the subsequent encounter, one terrorist affiliated with the self-styled group Lashkar-e-Taiba was gunned down. His associate has also been killed during the ongoing operation. The dead bodies of both the terrorists have also been retrieved and taken for further medico-legal formalities by the Police”, the spokesperson said, adding that the area was being thoroughly searched to check for any other suspicious article, support structure etc.
