Srinagar: An army soldier who was critically injured in a firefight with suspected militants in north Kashmir on Monday (January 20) has succumbed, officials said.
A senior police officer said that an encounter broke out in north Kashmir’s Sopore on Sunday evening when security forces were acting on specific inputs about a suspected militant hideout in Gujjarpati area of Zaloora.
As a joint team of the army, police and paramilitary forces approached the hideout, a group of militants, whose number has not been ascertained, opened fire at them, triggering a firefight.
However, the encounter had to be halted due to darkness even as security forces maintained a tight cordon around the hideout and additional reinforcements were rushed to prevent the militants from escaping.
The official said the encounter resumed with the crack of dawn on Monday morning during which an army soldier was injured, who was evacuated and shifted to an army hospital in Srinagar. “The soldier later succumbed to his injuries,” the officer said.
In a post on X, the army’s strategic Chinar Corps in Srinagar said that the deceased has been identified as Sepoy Pangala Kartheek, while paying him tributes.
“‘A Braveheart’s Sacrifice Resounds through Eternity, Igniting Courage in Generations to come.’ All Ranks of the Chinar Corps salute the supreme sacrifice of Braveheart Swr Pangala Kartheek, who laid down his life in the line of duty. Chinar Warriors salute his immense valour and sacrifice, express deepest condolences and stand in solidarity with the bereaved family,” the Chinar Corps said.
“A Braveheart’s Sacrifice Resounds through Eternity, Igniting Courage in Generations to come.”
All Ranks of the Chinar Corps salute the supreme sacrifice of Braveheart Swr Pangala Kartheek, who laid down his life in the line of duty.
AdvertisementChinar Warriors salute his immense valour… pic.twitter.com/O0cK2tPRpQ
— Chinar Corps🍁 – Indian Army (@ChinarcorpsIA) January 20, 2025
Advertisement
Security forces have launched a massive operation in the area to search for the perpetrators. “The operation is underway in the area,” the officer said.
The death of the army soldier in Sopore, a former bastion of separatists in north Kashmir, is the first instance of casualty among security forces this year in Jammu and Kashmir. Sopore is part of Baramulla district which falls along the Line of Control, a hotspot of militants and an infiltration route.
Also read: Kulgam: Hizbul Mujahideen Commander Among 5 Militants Killed in Encounter, 2 Army Soldiers Hurt
Following the reading down of Article 370 in 2019, new militant outfits like Peoples Anti-Fascist Front (PAFF) and The Resistance Front (TRF) have burst on to the conflict scene, who have launched a spate of attacks targeting armed forces, political workers and civilians in Jammu and Kashmir.
Security agencies believe that the two outfits comprising both local Kashmiri militant and foreigners are offshoots of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad and Laskhar-e-Toiba terror outfits respectively and that the tactic was an attempt by Islamabad to disassociate itself from the ongoing terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir.
According to South Asia Terrorism Portal, a New Delhi-based group which tracks insurgency in J&K, at least 268 armed forces personnel and more than 184 civilians have died in militant attacks since 2019 when the erstwhile state was bifurcated and downgraded into two Union Territories.
The spate of attacks since 2019 have kept Jammu and Kashmir on the boil, undermining the Bhartiya Janta Party-led Union government’s claims that peace had returned to the Union Territory after the August 5, 2019 decision.
