Three Border Security Force (BSF) personnel and a militant were killed in a gunfight after terrorists attacked a picket in Machil sector of north Kashmir’s Kupwara district on Monday morning.
A BSF spokesman said that the militants attacked a picket jointly manned by the BSF and the Army at Bhuriwala post in Machil sector, around 150 km from here, triggering a fierce gunfight that continued for several hours.
While two BSF men and a militant were killed on the spot, two BSF men and several Army soldiers were also injured in the encounter. One BSF jawan later succumbed to his injuries.
It was not clear whether the attackers were fresh infiltrators or they were already in the area. Defence spokesman in Srinagar Colonel NN Joshi ruled out the involvement of Pakistan Army’s Border Action Team in the attack. He said the encounter was a routine post-infiltration contact that resulted in casualties.
The slain militant is believed to belong to the lashkar-e-Tayyeba outfit. The other attackers fled to the area across the line of Control (loC) in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK). Sources said the attack on the picket was followed by firing and shelling from across the loC.
The slain BSF jawans have been identified as Sub-Inspector Mohinder Yaday, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, Head Constable CP Singh of Rajasthan and Constable CP Singh of West Bengal, all belonging to the BSF’s 156 Battalion. The bodies and the injured were later shifted to the Army’s Base Hospital in Srinagar.
Sources said that after the attack and shelling from across the loC, the troops retaliated effectively with shelling. A massive search operation was also launched in the area in to ascertain if any militants were still hiding in the area.