Kashmir Impulse Desk
Srinagar, Nov 12
Security forces intensified search operations across south Kashmir on Thursday following an attack on a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) checkpoint near Mir Bazar in Kulgam district that left three personnel injured.
The joint cordon-and-search operation in Nowpora Akhran, where the attack took place on Wednesday, entered its second day, with security forces expanding the area under surveillance.
The operation, suspended overnight because of darkness, resumed at first light. Additional personnel were deployed, while vehicle checks and security measures were intensified along the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway and adjoining roads.
Lieutenant General Balbir Singh, General Officer Commanding of the Army’s 15 Corps, visited the site to review the situation and assess the ongoing operation.
Senior officers of the Army, CRPF and Jammu and Kashmir Police are supervising the searches, which are being guided by human and technical intelligence inputs.
The attack took place around 2.15 pm on Wednesday when armed assailants opened fire on personnel of the CRPF’s 46th Battalion deployed at a checkpoint near Mir Bazar, around one to two kilometres from the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway.
The attackers emerged from a cluster of trees and fired at the personnel before fleeing into an adjoining forested area. Security personnel returned fire.
Three CRPF personnel were injured in the attack. They were identified as Head Constable Somveer Singh, from Madhya Pradesh, Constable Rakesh Dass, from Assam, and Constable Santosh Chandru, from West Bengal.
Singh sustained a bullet injury to his arm, and Dass was injured in the leg. Chandru suffered gunshot wounds to his abdomen and spine and was initially reported to be in critical condition.
The injured personnel were initially taken to Government Medical College, Anantnag. Chandru was later shifted to the Army’s 92 Base Hospital in Srinagar for specialised treatment, while the other two personnel were discharged after receiving treatment.
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha visited the hospital and enquired about Chandru’s condition from the treating doctors.
A team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) visited the attack site on Thursday to collect forensic evidence and examine the circumstances surrounding the incident.
A senior police officer said preliminary investigations suggested that at least three militants were involved, two of whom were suspected to be foreign nationals.
Investigators are examining CCTV footage to establish the sequence of events and identify the attackers, the officer said.
Officials said the assailants approached the checkpoint on foot through a marshy patch around 50 metres away, opened fire with AK-47 rifles and escaped through the same tree-lined area.
A Motorola mobile phone and a SIM card were recovered from the site, sources said.
Investigators are also examining the possible involvement of a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) module operating in south Kashmir.
At least three suspected overground workers linked to the outfit are being questioned over possible logistical support, including reconnaissance and shelter for the attackers, sources said.
Police sources have also suspected the involvement of local militant Lateef Ahmad Bhat of Kulgam, whom security agencies had earlier linked to two attacks in July.
Cartridges recovered from the site were said to match those found during an earlier incident in Killam, officials said.
The investigation is examining whether the attackers received assistance from local networks, amid concerns that foreign militants continue to operate with logistical support despite a decline in local recruitment.
Security agencies consider the period preceding winter particularly sensitive, as militants operating in higher reaches move to lower elevations ahead of heavy snowfall.
The attack was the third terror-related incident reported in south Kashmir in recent months.
Searches and area-domination operations continued across the region on Thursday.
