Srinagar: A junior commissioned officer (JCO) of the army was killed during an encounter with militants in Akhnoor sector of Jammu district, officials said on Saturday (April 12).

An army official said that the deceased JCO identified as Kuldeep Chand of 9 Punjab was hit when a group of militants exchanged gunfire with the army soldiers in the Keri-Battal sector of Akhnoor on Friday (April 11) evening.

“The officer was immediately shifted to a hospital in Jammu when he succumbed,” the official said, adding that the search operation in the area, which falls along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu division, was going on.

“He laid down his life while gallantly leading a #CounterInfiltration operation… We stand in solidarity with the bereaved family in this hour of grief,” the army’s White Knight Corps said in a post on X.

According to reports, the exchange of fire took place during an infiltration bid on Friday night by a group of militants whose number was not immediately known. Reports quoting official sources said that the infiltration bid was foiled and the militants involved were pushed back by the army. 

Earlier, reports had said that the JCO lost his life when he stepped on a landmine near a forward post in Akhnoor. However, the army hasn’t confirmed these reports yet. “The area has been cordoned off and a search operation is underway,” the official said. 

On February 11, an army captain and another soldier were killed while a third one was injured when militants set off an improvised explosive device in the area. A video of the explosion was also released on social media. 

The fresh escalation in Jammu took place two days after India and Pakistan held a brigade commander-level flag meeting on Thursday (April 10) at Chakkan Da Bagh meeting point in Poonch district along the LoC to deescalate border tensions, the second such meeting since February.

Also read: Kishtwar Encounter: One Suspected Militant Killed, Security Forces Continue Operations

While the army had said that the meeting was a “routine part of the border management process,” news agency PTI quoting official sources said that the Indian side had flagged its protest over recent infiltration attempts, ceasefire violations and IED explosions to their Pakistani counterparts.

Meanwhile, two more suspected militants, reportedly including a top commander, were killed in an ongoing encounter with a joint team of security forces in Chatroo tehsil of Kishtwar district, officials said. 

On Friday, an unidentified militant was killed in the area, which lies adjacent to south Kashmir’s Anantnag district. The encounter had broken out a day after the Union home minister Amit Shah wounded up his three-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir. 

"Op Chhatru: In the ongoing operations at #Chhatru, Kishtwar, despite bad and inclement weather, two more Pakistani terrorists have been eliminated. A large quantity of war-like stores, including One AK and One M4 rifle have been recovered. Operations are in progress," the army said in a post on X.

A search operation is also underway in Udhampur district of Jammu where a group of militants have been on the prowl since April 9 when they exchanged gunfire with a joint team of security forces in Jopher village.

The group of militants have taken two families hostage in recent days, causing panic and fear in the area, a bastion of the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) and the home district of Union minister Jitendra Singh. 

In recent months, security agencies have reported multiple sightings of militants in Kathua and Udhampur districts of Jammu division which has emerged as the new epicentre of insurgency-related violence following the reading down of Article 370 in 2019 by the BJP-led Union government.  

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