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1 more soldier killed as manhunt in Jammu and Kashmir enters third day
Colonel Manpreet Singh, Major Aashish Dhonchak, and DSP Humayun Muzamil Bhat were killed on Wednesday.
Security forces on Friday intensified their manhunt for terrorists who killed two army officers and a deputy superintendent of police (DSP) in a gunfight in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag district two days ago, as the counterterror operation dragged into its third day and another soldier was killed in action, officials aware of the matter said.
Read here: In J&K, soldier, army dog killed in anti-terror op
The soldier, a radio operator, was reported unaccounted for on Thursday, the officials said, asking not to be named, even as the operation continued without a breakthrough. Two other injured soldiers are recovering at the army’s base hospital in Srinagar; one of them has a gunshot wound in the leg while the other was injured after a fall, HT has learnt.
Colonel Manpreet Singh, the commanding officer of 19 Rashtriya Rifles, Major Aashish Dhonchak, from the same battalion, and DSP Humayun Muzamil Bhat were killed on Wednesday. They were leading teams that were hunting for the terrorists in the treacherous terrain and were fired upon from concealed positions while climbing a steep slope.
The radio operator was accompanying Dhonchak, the officials said. The army has not officially confirmed his death.The encounter offers a grim reminder of the everyday perils of a soldier’s life and unpredictable combat outcomes.
The police believe that one of the terrorists holed up in the forest is Uzair Khan, who has been operating in the area and knows the lay of the land. He joined the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) only a year ago but quickly climbed the terror ranks to become a so-called commander.
The counter-terror squads of the army and the J&K Police on Friday cast a wide net for the elusive LeT terrorists holed up in the Garol forest, closed in on their suspected hideout and brought it under heavy automatic fire, the officials said. The hot pursuit involved some of the army’s toughest fighting men, including those from the special forces, counterterrorism specialists from the J&K Police, dog squads, modern surveillance equipment, and drones to prevent the terrorists from giving security forces the slip.
The lack of results in prolonged operations can be frustrating but experts advise caution.
The operation in Anantnag has been continuing for 72 hours and the possibility of frustration creeping in cannot be ruled out in such circumstances, particularly after the army has had serious casualties, said former Northern Army commander Lieutenant General DS Hooda (retd).
“But this is the time to keep a cool head and calls for a measured response. We have seen that terrorists in Kashmir have a short life-span. If not today, they will be gone tomorrow. And I am sure we will hear soon that the terrorists have been neutralised,” Hooda said.
The army and police launched a joint operation on Tuesday night after receiving intelligence about terrorist movement and their likely hideout in the forested area.
Top army and police officers are monitoring the anti-terror operation and carefully assessing the images captured by the drones, the officials cited above said.
“Sporadic shooting could be heard since the morning. However, it is difficult to tell if the firing was one-sided or from both sides,” said a local villager.
The encounter has shaken the relative calm in the Kashmir Valley where terror attacks had declined significantly and were at a five-year low, according to data tabled by the government in Parliament.
Read here: Soldier missing in counterterror operation underway in J&K’s Anantnag
J&K recorded only 30 terrorist incidents till July 31 this year, compared to 125 last year, 129 in 2021, 126 in 2020, 153 in 2019 and 228 in 2018, the data showed. Similarly, there were 24 encounters or counterterror operations till July 31 this year, compared to 117 last year, 100 in 2021, 118 in 2020, 102 in 2019 and 189 in 2018. While 11 security personnel were killed till July 31 this year, the figure stood at 32, 42, 63,80 and 91 in the previous five years respectively.
To be sure, the Jammu region has also witnessed two major attacks this year.
Five soldiers were killed and an officer wounded in a terror ambush in Rajouri’s Kandi forest area in May, with the attack suspected to have been carried out by the same group of terrorists who had ambushed an army truck and killed five soldiers in Poonch in April.
