A brave Army Havildar gunned down three militants before he fell to bullets in a fierce encounter East of Shamsavari Ranges in North Kashmir’s Baramulla district on Friday. As many as six militants were killed in two separate operations that started on Thursday night.
In a release, the Army said on Thursday night Havildar JD Hangpan Dada activated his team after noticing the movement of a group of heavily-armed terrorists.
“In spite of his party being pinned down by preventive firing by the terrorists, Dada used his ingenuity to make a short hook and killed a terrorist. The second terrorist opened fire to stop the rest of the team from advancing. As commander of the party, Dada regained control and closed in to eliminate the second terrorist as well. He then volunteered to lead the search for one terrorist who was firing from behind the boulders. Braving all odds in the extremely harsh weather and difficult terrain at the height of 13,000-feet, he moved forward and charged ahead regardless of his injuries and personal safety to eliminate the third terrorist. Another terrorist who was hiding in a shallow cave engaged him causing fatal injuries,” the release said.
The fourth terrorist was later eliminated after a major gun battle by the rest of the group.
A senior Army official said on Friday that the presence of mind of Dada, a native of Boduria village in Tirap district of Arunachal Pradesh, saved the lives of his team members who were coming under heavy fire from the terrorists.
The official said that Dada was injured badly in the encounter as the terrorists who crossed over from Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK) had the advantage of being at a height.
However, Dada displayed raw courage, unflinching grit, presence of mind and with utter disregard to his personal safety and despite bleeding profusely, discharged his duties and made the supreme sacrifice for the nation, the official said.
The 37-year-old braveheart is survived by his wife Chasen lowang, daughter Roukhin who will turn 10 on June 30 and six-year-old son Senwang. His body will be taken to his native village where the last rites will be conducted with military honours.
In the second encounter, security forces cordoned off Kunchpura Village in Tangmarg pocket of North Kashmir’s Baramulla district on Friday morning following a tip-off that militants were hiding in a house.
A senior police officer said that the house was sealed off and the militants were asked to surrender but they preferred to engage in a gunfight.
“After surrounding the militants, several appeals and announcements were made by prominent citizens asking the terrorists to surrender but they responded every time with intense fire on the security forces,” spokesman of XV Corps in Srinagar, Colonel NN Joshi said in a statement.
The house was later shelled and destroyed during the exchange of fire resulting in the death of the two terrorists who were holed-up there. The slain terrorists were local residents and belonged to the Hizbul Mujahideen outfit. One of them was identified as Mehrajudin Bhat who had graduated in Science and education before joining the militant ranks. His partner was identified as Adil Ahmed Mir, a resident of Sopore area.
Joshi said the slain terrorists were involved in a number of violent incidents. One AK-47 rifle, one pistol with ammunition and other war-like stores were recovered from the site of the encounter. Hundreds of people came out on the streets to protest against the encounter. They shouted pro-azaadi slogans and demanded handing over of the bodies for burial.