Captain, 3 soldiers, killed in Doda gunfight
An Indian Army captain and three soldiers were killed by terrorists in Doda district, Jammu, sparking concerns of increased violence in the region.
An Indian Army captain and three soldiers were gunned down by terrorists in the forests of Doda district in Jammu on Monday night, officials said on Tuesday, the latest in a wave of terror attacks that have roiled the region this year and sparked concerns that it is emerging as the new epicentre of violence in the restive Union territory.
The four people killed in the gunbattle were identified as Captain Brijesh Thapa from Darjeeling in West Bengal, Naik D Rajesh from Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh, Sepoy Bijendra and Sepoy Ajay, both from Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan, all of whom belong to the counter-insurgency unit of 10 Rashtriya Rifles. This is the third major encounter involving security forces and terrorists in the forests of Doda in the past three weeks, resulting in a cumulative toll of four soldiers killed and four injured.
Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi and all ranks of the army paid tributes to the dead soldiers. “Indian Army stands firm with the bereaved families in this hour of grief,” additional directorate general of public information of the Indian Army posted on X. One personnel from the Jammu & Kashmir Police was also critically injured.
The attack is the 11thin Jammu this year, in which 11security personnel killed and 11civilians have been killed. Fiveterrorists have been killed either in these encounters or in operations carried out by security forces.
The spate of attacks in the erstwhile peaceful region has sparked concerns that Jammu has emerged as the new hub violence in the Union territory where tens of thousands of people have died in extremist attacks since the 1990s.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh said counterterrorist operations were underway. ”Our soldiers remain committed to eliminate the scourge of terrorism and restore peace and order in the region.”
Defence spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Suneel Bartwal said that the army launched a joint counterterror operation with the Jammu & Kashmir Police in Urarbaggi, 55km north of Doda town.
“At 8.40pm on Monday, the search party was able to establish contact with the terrorists hiding in the thickly forested and mountainous area with restricted visibility due to low clouds and rain. In the initial volley of fire, four Indian Army personnel were injured, who later succumbed to their injuries,” Bartwal said.
Bartwal said additional troops and equipment were brought in to flush out foreign terrorists who infiltrated into India and spotted moving in the upper reaches of Jammu in Udhampur, Doda, Kishtwar and Bhaderwah districts. “Similar operations are being conducted in Kathua in a relentless manner. The series of operations in the recent past have resulted in the neutralisation of three terrorists in Gandoh on June 26, besides successfully thwarting the Chattargala terrorist attack on June 11,” Bartwal said.
On Monday night, a group of three to five terrorists ambushed the search party — comprising the captain and seven soldiers -- on a hilltop. The security forces chased them into the treacherous terrain and thick foliage, leading to another firefight in the woods around 9pm on Monday, said officials aware of developments. The terrorists escaped while five personnel were wounded, they added.
Kashmir Tigers, a proxy outfit of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), claimed responsibility for the attack.
The attack renews worries about the increased movement of terrorists in Jammu, particularly south of the Pir Panjal range, forcing a recalibration of security forces that have reoriented their units, and attempted to strengthen intelligence networks for counterterror operations.
In July 2023, officials involved in counterterrorism efforts told HT that terror groups from Pakistan were now targeting Jammu, Rajouri, Poonch and Reasi districts, forcing security agencies to “recalibrate their responses”. One officer told HT at the time that there were between 30 and 40 highly trained terrorists that had crossed over into Jammu. “While trained terrorists appear to be using the Line of Control (LoC) to enter India and hide inside the forests; their commanders are also trying to establish their bases in Jammu region. In fact, one or two senior commanders of terror group Al-Badr may have already come to Jammu either via Nepal or Bangladesh,” one officer said.
Union home minister Amit Shah has directed security forces in Jammu and Kashmir to adopt similar tactics in Jammu region as they did in Kashmir to contain terrorism. Shah, during a meeting, issued clear directions to replicate the success achieved in the Kashmir Valley through “zero terror” and area dominance plans in the Jammu region with a focus on sensitive areas.
A senior Jammu & Kashmir police officer said that Monday’s search operations were launched in the Desa forests since April 28 when terrorists killed Mohammad Sharief, a village defence guard, in the Basantgarh area of Udhampur district, bordering Doda.
“There are no hamlets in the area, which has dense jungles called the Desa forests. These have a hilly terrain, natural caves, ravines and rivulets. The only population who live in dhoks (mud houses) in the area are tribal nomads, who head to meadows with their livestock in summer,” the officer said, requesting anonymity.
Security and intelligence agencies suspect that eight to 10 groups of three to four terrorists, trained in guerilla warfare and being helped by overground workers, are active in Doda. “We suspect they are all foreign terrorists, who recently infiltrated from Pakistan via traditional routes along the international border in Hiranagar sector of Kathua. Some might have infiltrated from the Punjab border as well,” said an intelligence official.
“Being helped with logistics by overground workers and technology, these terrorists are using dense forests and hilly terrain to their advantage. They ambush army convoys and search parties and escape into their hideouts inside dense jungles,” he said.
The attack was the third in Doda district in 10 days after an exchange of fire broke out between security forces and terrorists during a search operation in the Goli-Gadi forest on July 9. One day before that, terrorists lobbed hand-grenades and fired with automatic weapons at an army truck passing through Badnota village, 250km from the Doda encounter site, in Kathua on July 8.
Naib Subedar Anand Singh, havaldar Kamal Singh, rifleman Anuj Negi, naik Vinod Singh, and rifleman Adarsh Negi, all from Uttarakhand, were killed in the ambush and five army personnel were injured.
Former director general of police SP Vaid said, “The situation in Jammu region seems to be very serious. A number of incidents have taken place. The arc of terrorism is spreading from Rajouri and Poonch to Reasi, Kathua, Billawar, Doda... We have to eliminate these terrorists in well-organised and strategically planned operations.”
The Tuesday attack triggered a political row on Tuesday, as opposition parties alleged there is “no accountability” over the spate of terror attacks and called for “careful recalibration” in the country’s security strategy.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the “spate of terror attacks that has gripped the Union territory in the past 36 days needs careful recalibration in our security strategy”. “The Modi government is acting as if everything is ‘business as usual’ and nothing has changed. They must know that increasingly, the Jammu region is bearing the brunt of these attacks,” he said.
J&K lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha appealed to the public to unite against terrorism by providing crucial information on the terrorists to the security forces.