Pulwama encounter: 3 Jaish terrorists gunned down in Kashmir; Army major, 4 personnel killed

The security forces on Monday gunned down top Jaish commander Kamran, the mastermind behind the fidayeen attack on the CRPF convoy, and two other terrorists in an encounter in South Kashmir.

Security forces personnel arrive for the reinforcement during a gunbattle with the militants in which the top commander of the Jaish and Lethpora attack mastermind Kamran was killed. Photo: PTI

NEW DELHI: The security forces on Monday gunned down top Jaish-e-Mohammed commander Kamran, the mastermind of the fidayeen attack on CRPF convoy in Pulwama, and two other JeM terrorists in an encounter in South Kashmir. Five security personnel, including an Army major, and a civilian were also killed in the gunbattle that lasted for over 16 hours. At least nine jawans, including a brigade commander and a lieutenant colonel and a deputy inspector general of the Jammu and Kashmir police, were also injured in the encounter in Pulwama's Pinglan area, about 12 km from where a suicide bomber belonging to the Jaish-e-Mohammed drove his explosives-laden vehicle into a CRPF bus last week, killing 40 troopers. The Pinglan encounter claimed the lives four Army personnel, a policeman, three Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists and a civilian, the officials said. Two of the slain terrorists were identified as Kamran, a Pakistani national and top commander of the Jaish, and Hilal Ahmad, a local recruited by the terror group, they said, adding the identity of the third is being ascertained The slain soldiers were identified as Major V S Dhondial, Havaldar Sheo Ram and Sepoys Hari Singh and Ajay Kumar. A head constable of the police was also killed. The injured included DIG (south Kashmir) Amit Kumar, who received a gunshot wound in the abdomen, and a brigade commander, who was hurt in the leg.  All the injured are stable, the officials said. The security forces ringed a militant hideout in Pinglena village, just 10 km from the terror attack site, triggering a gun battle overnight Sunday which continued intermittently till Monday evening. A Major and three soldiers besides a civilian were killed in the initial burst of gunfire by the militants. The Army, the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) fought back, killing three militants of the Pakistan-backed Jaish-e-Mohammed, one of them a Pakistani identified as Kamran. The security forces recovered the bodies of the militants and were carrying out searches in the area when some militants hiding in a cow shed suddenly opened fire, injuring Deputy Inspector General of Police Amit Kumar, Brigadier Harbir Singh, a Lt Colonel, a Captain and five soldiers and a Sub-Inspector of SOG. Amit Kumar's Personal Security Officer (PSO), Abdul Rashid, was killed. The Pakistani terrorist who was killed reportedly masterminded the February 14 attack on the CRPF, inflicting the worst loss suffered by security forces at one go since militancy erupted in the state in 1989. Defence Ministry spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia said: "One of the two slain JeM (Jaish-e-Mohammed) terrorists was a top commander and belonged to Pakistan." The civilian who died was identified as Mushtaq Ahmad. As the fighting raged, civilians poured out of their homes in nearby areas and pelted stones at the security personnel in a bid to help the militants escape. The security forces fired tear gas to disperse the crowds. The Jaish has claimed responsibility for the February 14 terror attack that targeted a convoy of 78 vehicles on its way from Jammu to Srinagar. About 2,500 CRPF personnel were on their way to the valley, many returning to work after leave. (With inputs from agencies)