Poonch Attack: Pak Needs To Control Terror Apparatus, Says Cong Leader. 14 Detained, Search Ops Underway. Top Points

A cordon-and-search operation by drones and sniffer dogs to trace the terrorists who killed five Army personnel in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch entered the second day on Saturday.

Army Commander Northern Command Lt General Upendra Dwivedi at the site of Thursday's terror attack in Poonch.

New Delhi: Congress MP Manish Tewari on Saturday said the Poonch terror attack shows Pakistan doesn’t want to normalise the relations with India and the attack comes close on the heels of their foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s visit for Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), news agency ANI reported. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is set to visit India for a meeting of SCO ministers in Goa next month, making it the first visit by a senior Pakistani leader to India in nearly a decade.

“Poonch terror attack happened when Pakistan FM Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is coming to Goa for SCO meeting. Pakistan's deep state don't want normalisation of India-Pakistan relations. They need to control their terror apparatus. I hope Indian govt will firmly convey to Pak FM that they need to control export of terror,” ANI quoted the Congress leader as saying.

Poonch terror attack happened when Pakistan FM Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is coming to Goa for SCO meeting. Pakistan's deep state don't want normalisation of India-Pakistan relations. They need to control their terror apparatus. I hope Indian govt will firmly convey to Pak FM that… pic.twitter.com/tgym4jodQN

— ANI (@ANI) April 22, 2023

Here are the key developments:

• A cordon-and-search operation by drones and sniffer dogs to trace the terrorists who killed five Army personnel in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch entered the second day on Saturday. Five Army personnel were killed and another was sustained serious injuries after their vehicle caught fire following the terror attack in Poonch on Thursday.
• Top security officials, including Border Security Force Director General SL Thaosen and Additional Director General of Police Mukesh Singh, apart from those from the National Security Guard, visited the spot during a security review. According to news agency PTI, fourteen people have been detained as part of the ongoing probe.
• According to preliminary investigation, the Army truck was carrying fruits and other items to a forward village for Iftar that was supposed to be hosted by the Army's Rashtriya Rifles unit on Thursday. The truck was carrying fruits, vegetables and other items to Sangiote village from the Bhimber Gali camp, officials said.
• The investigation has further revealed that the attack might have been carried out by a group of three to four militants who probably used a sticky bomb or grenade due to which the truck caught fire. They possibly spent more than a year in Rajouri and Poonch to gain adequate knowledge of the terrain, PTI reported. The Army has also found bullet marks on the vehicle and the body of a jawan.
• All India Sufi Sajjadanashin Council chairman Hazrat Syed Naseeruddin Chishti condemned the terrorist attack and said the entire country is with the armed forces. "Till date, all our brave soldiers have sacrificed their lives for the protection of Kashmir and peace in Kashmir. We will not let their martyrdom go in vain, the whole country is standing with the armed forces," Chishti said in a statement. “Such attacks are part of a conspiracy to defame India because a G20 meeting is scheduled to take place in Kashmir,” he added.
• Hitting out at the BJP-ruled Centre over the terror attack, Shiv Sena (UBT) said Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh were busy in political work and the terrorists took advantage of it.
• National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah said that the security forces should not harass innocent people during their operation against the perpetrators of the Poonch attack. "They have started operation in Pooch. They should not arrest innocent people. It was their mistake, they should not harass innocent people. It is wrong and it should be avoided, " PTI quoted Abdullah as saying. He also expressed surprise that Eid prayers were not allowed at Jamia Masjid.
• Villagers of the border hamlet of Sangiote decided not to celebrate Eid as they grieved the killing of the army personnel. "We have not celebrated Eid with any pomp and show. We just offered prayers. The people are saddened by the death of jawans, who were bringing material for our Iftar on Thursday evening," Sangiote Sarpanch Mukhtiar Khan told PTI. Expressing solidarity with the Indian Army and the bereaved families, he said an Iftar was scheduled in the village on Thursday evening and the jawans were carrying vegetables, fruits and other material in the truck from Bhimber Gali camp, when they came under attack.