Pakistani Infiltrator Gunned Down by BSF in J&K's Samba District
Srinagar: A Pakistani national is believed to have been shot dead by the Border Security Forces (BSF) after he allegedly tried to infiltrate the international border through Samba district of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said on Monday (January 26).
The alleged infiltration bid was foiled on Sunday night at a time when security forces were on a high alert amid the preparations for the 77th Republic Day, which was celebrated peacefully on Monday across Jammu and Kashmir.
According to reports, “suspicious movement” was noticed by the BSF troopers near a border post along the international border in Majra in Samba’s Ramgarh sector on Sunday night.
The BSF troopers “challenged and repeatedly warned” the suspect who “continued advancing towards Indian territory under the cover of darkness” following which the troops opened fire which resulted in his death.
“The body of the deceased Pakistani national is lying close to the International Border on the Pakistani side,” the report said.
The identity of the suspect and whether he was carrying any arms at the time of the shooting was not known. It was also not clear immediately whether he was shot on the Pakistani territory or his body was pulled back from the Indian territory after being injured in the shooting.
Also read: J&K: Jaish-e-Mohammed Militant Gunned Down in Kathua Encounter
Earlier this month, the international border in Samba, which was used as an infiltration route by militants from Pakistan, turned into a site of drone incursions which put the BSF and the army on high alert.
The Samba shootout took place as the security forces are in the midst of massive searches amid reports that several groups of militants have taken refuge in the higher reaches of the volatile Chenab valley which comprises Doda, Kishtwar and Ramban districts of Jammu division.
Doda shares border with the strategic Udhampur district of J&K which is home to several military installations and Himachal Pradesh’s Chamba.
Last week, 10 army soldiers were killed while 11 more suffered injuries when their armoured vehicle on the way to a counter-insurgency operation plunged into a gorge on the interstate Doda-Chamba road.
On January 18, an army soldier of the elite special forces laid down his life while seven others suffered injuries in an encounter with militants in Kishtwar district.
A fresh encounter broke out between security forces and militants in the district on Sunday night, second since the army suffered the fatality in the hilly Singhpora area of Chatroo which has witnessed uptick in militancy-related violence in recent weeks and months.
According to reports, the encounter broke out in Kishtwar’s Janseer Kandiwar forest where a joint team of the Army and J&K police was carrying out a search operation.
During the searches, the joint security team exchanged fire with militants, which continued for some time. No significant breakthrough has been achieved by security forces in the encounter so far.
On January 22, the same group of militants is believed to have exchanged fire with security forces some distance from the site of the fatal encounter in Kishtwar but they had managed to escape under the cover of dense vegetation and darkness.
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