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2 army personnel on patrol duty near LoC killed in accidental grenade blast
The two army personnel, Captain Anand and Naib Subedar Bhagwan Singh, were part of a patrol team near the LoC in Poonch’s Mendhar sector
An Indian Army captain and a junior commissioned officer (JCO) were killed in an accidental grenade blast near the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir late on Sunday, people familiar with the matter said.
The deceased were identified as Captain Anand from Bihar’s Bhagalpur district and Naib Subedar Bhagwan Singh from Ambedkar Nagar in Uttar Pradesh.
They were part of a patrol party in Poonch’s Mendhar sector when the incident took place.
“On the night of July, an accidental grenade blast occurred in the Mendhar sector in Poonch district when troops were performing their duties along the Line of Control,” said a defence spokesperson.
“The blast resulted in injuries to soldiers, who were immediately evacuated by helicopter to Udhampur command hospital. During the treatment, one officer and one JCO succumbed to their injuries,” he added
“General officer commanding (GOC) @Whiteknight_IA and all Ranks salute brave hearts Capt Anand and Nb Sub Bhagwan Singh who made the supreme sacrifice while performing their duties on the LoC in Mendhar Sector. We offer deepest condolences to their family members,” the White Knight Corps, as the army’s 16 Corps is known, said in a post on Twitter.
On July 6, two army jawans were injured in an accidental blast during rocket launcher practice in the Bhera area along the LoC in Poonch district.
Poonch district, where the accidental grenade blast took place on Sunday, is known to be used by Pakistan-based terrorists to infiltrate the country. The accident comes days after a group of terrorists attempted to infiltrate across the LoC on July 12 night but the effort was foiled by alert army troops.
