Four top Pakistani militants belonging to terror group Lashker-e-Taiba were killed and three jawans lost their lives in a two-day fierce gun battle in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir that ended today.
Acting on a tip-off, army troops and police had launched a cordon and search operation in Planakanthol-Lambibari forests in Kandi Bhudal belt of Rajouri district yesterday, senior superintendent of police Shafkat Watalie told PTI.
During search operation of the area, where four-five militants were hiding, army and police came under heavy fire and retaliated, sparking a fierce gun battle.
In the encounter which ended today, four top Pakistani militants of LeT were killed, the SSP said, adding three army jawans also died in the gunfight.
The militants have been identified as Abu Kital, Abu Suhab, Abu Abdullah and Chhota Osama -- all Pakistanis, Watalie said, adding that four AK rifles, magazines, grenades, pistols, a satellite phone, a GPS device, geo-satellite maps of Jammu and Kashmir, besides Pakistan-made edible and electronic items were recovered from them.
"The items recovered from them point toward the deep involvement of a section of Pakistani establishment in facilitating infiltration into Jammu and Kashmir," he said.
The slain jawans have been identified as Havaldar S Singh, Naik Sher Khan and Sepoy Ram Prasad. Station house officer (SHO) of Dharamshal police station Showkat Ali was injured and has been evacuated to a hospital.
The militants were part of a group which infiltrated from Pallanwala along the Line of Control in Aknoor tehsil of Jammu district a few days back, the SSP said.
He said two militants of that group were killed on Saturday and four were killed today, while three to four other militants are being tracked by the police in Dharamshal area of Rajouri district.
Brigadier General of Staff (BGS), 16 Corps, Brig Gurdeep Singh said that search operations are going on to track down the rest of the militants who had infiltrated. The four militants neutralised were all Pakistanis, he said.
