Day after Kathua terror attack, massive searches on to track down terrorists

Close on the heels of the terror attack that left five soldiers dead at Badnota village in Kathua district of Jammu region, security forces resumed their searches on Tuesday to track down the attackers, officials said.

“A massive joint search operation has been launched by the army, special operation group of the Jammu and Kashmir Police and the CRPF at Machhedi, Badnota, Kindli and Loi Malhar villages to track down the terrorists responsible for the ambush on the army truck,” a senior police official said.

The army has pressed into service helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles and sniffer dogs to trace the attackers, he said, adding “The area is hilly with an undulating terrain and has dense forests. The security forces are moving cautiously into the woods to trace and eliminate the attackers.”

Five soldiers, including a junior commissioned officer (JCO) were killed and as many were injured on Monday afternoon when heavily armed terrorists ambushed a truck in the remote Machedi area.

Kashmir Tigers, a proxy outfit of the Jaish-e-Mohammad outfit, has claimed responsibility for the attack.

According to sources, two to foreign terrorists are believed to have executed the attack. They are part of the same group that was involved in the Basangarh attack in which a village defence guard, Mohammad Sharief, was killed in an encounter with terrorists at Panara village on April 28.

Security forces had in June picked up movement of one group in the upper reaches of the Bani, Daggar and Kindli areas of Kathua district and conducted search operations.

Five soldiers from Uttarakhand

The five soldiers killed in the attack belonged to Uttarakhand, CM Pushkar Singh Dhami said on Tuesday, asserting that their sacrifice will not go in vain.

The army personnel were identified as rifleman Anuj Negi from Pauri, naib subedar Anand Singh Rawat from Rudraprayag, naik Vinod Singh from Tehri, Kamal Singh from Pauri and rifleman Adarsh Negi from Tehri.

Commander of the Western Command, Lieutenant General Manoj Kumar Katiyar and other officers, on Tuesday, paid homage to the soldiers at Mamun Cantonment in Pathankot.

“Commander and & all ranks paid homage to #bravehearts Nb Sub Anand Singh, Hav Kamal Singh, Nk Vinod Singh, Rfn Anuj Negi & Rfn Adarsh Negi for sacrificing their lives in service of the nation. We stand in solidarity with the bereaved family members,” Western Command wrote on its official ‘X’ handle.

Protests against attack in Jammu

Jammu witnessed protests by the Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association (Jammu chapter), Rashtriya Bajrang Dal and various social and religious organisations on Tuesday.

Bar association president Vikram Sharma led lawyers who protested against Pakistan-sponsored terror, on the high court premises. He paid homage to the five soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty and demanded stern action against terrorists and their sympathisers in the region.

J&K Rashtriya Bajrang Dal president Rakesh Bajrangi led a demonstration in which activists raised anti-Pakistan slogans and the country’s flag. “We demand the Centre crush terrorism with an iron hand in Jammu and Kashmir. The government must identify overground workers and take stern action against them. We also demand that villagers be given weapons and be trained in firing to take on the terrorists. It is time for the Centre to allow Indian forces to smash terror camps in Pakistan,” Bajrangi added.