Suspicious object found on Rajouri highway in Jammu and Kashmir, destroyed
The suspected material packed in a fruit packing box was later destroyed through a controlled explosion, said a senior police official.
A suspicious object was found at Manjakote in Jammu division’s Rajouri district on Wednesday morning leading to regulation of traffic on the highway to avoid any untoward incident while a bomb disposal squad was engaged to deal with the object, said an official.
"This morning, a road opening patrol (ROP) of the army found a suspicious object along the highway near Manjakote. Soon, traffic was controlled on the highway and a bomb disposal squad was called in," said Rajouri SSP, Chandan Kohli.
The suspected material packed in a fruit packing box was later destroyed through a controlled explosion, he added. Further investigation is going on in the case registered at Manjakote police station under relevant sections of law.
Station House Officer (SHO) of the Manjakote police station Pankaj Sharma said the bomb-like object was found on the roadside around 8.30 am, according to PTI. The spot was secured with sandbags and armoured vehicles, it added.
The development comes on a day when a group of more than 20 foreign envoys and senior diplomats arrived in Jammu and Kashmir for a two-day visit to witness first-hand, the government’s efforts to restore normalcy in the Union territory after the abrogation of Article 370, which granted special rights to Jammu and Kashmir and its bifurcation into UTs of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh in 2019.
Tight security arrangements were put in place for the visit of the group comprising European Union (EU) ambassador Ugo Astuto, and envoys of some 10 European countries, including French ambassador Emmanuel Lenain. Envoys and senior diplomats of Bangladesh, and countries in Africa, Central Asia and Central America are also part of the group.
On Saturday, al-Badr militant Suhail Bashir (21), a resident of Newa in Pulwama, was arrested from Jammu bus stand area with 7 kg of improvised explosive device (IED). He was tasked by his handlers in Pakistan to plant the powerful IED in Jammu to cause mass destruction.
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