Two members of the Village Defence Group (VDG) were reportedly shot dead by terrorists in the upper reaches of Kishtwar on Thursday. The bodies of two VDG members have not been recovered by the police till late evening.
According to police, the slain VDG members have been identified as Nazir Ahmed S/O Mohd Khalil and Kuldeep Kumar S/O Amar Chand both residents of Ohli Kuntwara.
Unconfirmed reports claimed both the VDG members were kidnapped during the day and their dead bodies, with marks of bullet injuries, were found in the evening.
A lesser-known terrorist outfit Kashmir Tigers has also claimed responsibility for the attack while releasing images in social media.
The VDG members act as force multipliers in the far-flung areas of the Jammu region assisting ground forces during search operations and maintaining a tight vigil in and around their villages.
For a long time, they were complaining about the lack of sophisticated weapons and recently the government fulfilled their demand by providing them with the latest weapons.
The government of India had decided to provide the latest weapons to Village Defence Guards in the form of SLR. Earlier the VDG had .303 guns, but now they are equipped with modern SLRs.
