Soldier killed, 2 injured in gunfight in J&K’s Kishtwar

Jammu: A soldier was killed and two others injured on Thursday in an ongoing gunfight between the joint security forces & terrorists in J&K’s Kishtwar district, officials said.

Officials said that the soldier was martyred in the encounter in the Singhpora Chatroo area of Kishtwar.

“Army jawan martyred in ongoing Kishtwar encounter has been identified as Sepoy Gaykar Sandip Pandurang, resident of village Karandi tehsil, Akole, Ahmednagar district, Maharashtra. The injured soldiers have been shifted to the hospital. The encounter is going on,” an official said.

Earlier reports had said that two terrorists were killed in this encounter. However, the report has still not been officially confirmed.

Joint forces, including 2 Para, 11 Rashtriya Rifles, 7 Assam Rifles, and the Special Operations Group (SOG) of J&K Police, started the operation against Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terrorists, reportedly three to four in number, in the Singhpora Chatroo area in the morning.

Officials said that the joint security forces launched a cordon and search operation (CASO) after getting specific information about the presence of a group of three to four terrorists.

“The cordon was tightened to engage the terrorists and to ensure that they are unable to escape. As the joint forces came closer, the hiding terrorists opened fire, triggering an encounter which is now going on.