Militants storm police station in Kathua Attack leaves six dead
Kathua, March 20,Neyaz Elahi,CNS: Suspected militants Friday stormed a police station close to International border in Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir killing at least three Government Forces personnel and injuring nine of them. Both the suspected militants were also killed in the counter attack. The deceased included two militants, three government forces personnel and a civilian.
Police sources told CNS that militants in Army fatigues stormed police station Raj Bagh during the wee hours on Friday. “The militants two in number arrived in a Mahindra vehicle and as soon as they reached near the gate of police station, one of them directly fired upon a police man in head, guarding the gate killing him on spot. The militants fired indiscriminately creating panic in the peripheries,” he said.
Police sources said that the militants wearing Army uniforms intercepted a jeep going from Jammu to Pathankot on the pretext of checking the vehicle. They reportedly hijacked the jeep which had three passengers on board and fled towards the Rajbagh Police Station where they opened fire on a sentry and killed him. The militants then hurled grenades at the police station and opened indiscriminate fire.
During the militant onslaught, three government forces personnel were killed while a civilian also lost his life. At least nine police and CRPF personnel suffered injuries.
Soon after the attack, reinforcement was dispatched to the encounter site and government forces after cordoning off the area neutralized both the militants. Choppers were pressed into service to nab and eliminate the militants. Confirming the killing of two militants, Jammu and Kashmir police chief K.Rajendra said encounter came to an end during afternoon hours, however, search operation continued in the area.
Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah said the insurgents would have infiltrated into this side from across the border.
"These Fidayeen will have walked across the border last night & launched their attack this morning which is the past pattern as well," he tweeted.
"My thoughts are with those brave security personnel dealing with the fidayeen attach in Kathua town of Jammu this morning," he said.
Inspector General of Police Jammu Zone Disnesh Rana said that, “we are clearing the area, verifying the facts and will examine the documents we have recovered from militants.”
On 26 September 2013, three heavily armed militants had attacked a police station and an Army camp in the border districts of Kathua and Samba killing 10 people, including four policemen and a lieutenant colonel of the Army. (CNS)
