A holed-up militant of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), who used rocket propelled grenade (RPG) to damage two drones of the security forces, was killed in a night-long encounter in south Kashmir’s Kulgam on Friday.
Meanwhile, a shutdown was observed over the killing of a child in a grenade attack on a BJP leader in Rajouri district on Thursday night.
“We have managed to thwart a major attack ahead of Independence Day. Intermittent firing remained throughout the night. In the early hours, one Pakistani militant, Usman of the LeT, was killed. His killing confirmed Pakistan’s involvement in the attack,” Inspector General of Police (IGP) Vijay Kumar said.
Attack on BSF convoy
The militant had taken shelter in a building after attacking a BSF convoy at Malpora, Kulgam, around 2:30 p.m. on Thursday. The convoy was moving on the Srinagar-Jammu highway when at least two militants opened fire on it and later holed up in a multi-storeyed structure.
“A rocket launcher was used to target the building, which was a huge concrete structure. Drones were also used to keep updating the situation inside the building. However, two drones were destroyed by the terrorist,” Mr. Kumar said.
According to the police, the trapped militant used an RPG. “The terrorist resorted to launching a RPG shell, multiple grenades and opened heavy fire. A terrorist using a RPG was noted after a long time,” Mr. Kumar stated.
The second trapped militant managed to escape from the spot. The recoveries at the encounter site included one RPG launcher, an AK rifle and two grenades.
Two security forces personnel also received injuries during the encounter. “Two civilians were injured far away from the site by stray projectiles,” the police said.
Planned attack
Mr. Kumar said the manner of engagement by the terrorist suggested that the attack was planned and intended to inflict considerable damage on security forces “to disrupt the scheduled functions of August 15 and spread fear amongst the general public”.
Traffic, which was halted on Thursday afternoon, was allowed to ply on the highway, connecting the Kashmir Valley with Jammu.
In a separate incident, a CRPF jawan was injured in a grenade attack in north Kashmir’s Sopore on Friday afternoon.
“The grenade was thrown at a CRPF camp on Sopore’s main chowk. The explosion resulted in injury to a jawan,” officials said.
Two-year-old dies
A shutdown was observed in the Pir Panjal valley’s Rajouri on Friday against the militant attack on a BJP leader on Thursday evening, which left one child dead and seven others injured.
“It is being ascertained where the grenade was thrown from. The police have lodged an FIR. One child has died and seven people were injured in the blast. All of them belong to one family,” Deputy Commissioner, Rajouri, Rajesh Kumar Shavan, said.
The attack on the residence of BJP leader, Jasbir Singh, was widely condemned by regional parties, besides the senior leaders of the party.
"We condemn the cowardly act of the terrorists. We are hopeful the culprits will be arrested soon,``J & K BJP president Ravinder Raina, who visited the victim family, said.
Several Muslim organisations also condemned the attack and supported the shutdown call issued by the Sanatan Dharam Sabha, according to locals. The shutdown affected the normal life in the district, which was reeling under tension. Protests were also held by local groups over the incident.
