Kathua: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday arrived at the incident site where an Army convoy was ambushed in the Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir in which five Army personnel, including a junior commissioned officer, tragically lost their lives on July 8.
In the attack, five others sustained injuries in a terrorist ambush on a routine patrol vehicle near Badnota village on Monday. Meanwhile, security has been tightened along the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway following the attack.
Following the attack, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), and Jammu and Kashmir police personnel have been deployed along the National Highway (NH44) in Udhampur.
This measure was taken as the 11th batch of Amarnath Yatra pilgrims passed through Udhampur on Tuesday morning. Multi-layered security arrangements have been put in place by the security forces to ensure the safety of the pilgrims.
Since June 9, there have been terror strikes at four places in Reasi, Kathua and Doda in which nine pilgrims and a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawan were killed. A civilian and at least seven security personnel were also injured.
Meanwhile, five soldiers who were injured in the Kathua terror attack were given primary treatment at the Community Health Centre, Billawar and have been referred to the Military Hospital, Pathankot, for further treatment.
“Five injured jawans were brought here and have been given primary treatment. They have been referred to the Military Hospital, Pathankot for treatment…One dead body has been brought here,” Sheela Devi, Medical officer at Community Health Centre, Billawar, told ANI.
Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed a “spike” in the number of terrorist attacks in the past few months. In June, three terrorists were neutralised in an encounter with security forces in the Gandoh, and Bhaderwah sectors of district Doda in Jammu and Kashmir, ADGP Anand Jain said.
Meanwhile, Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi on Monday expressed grief over the killing of soldiers in an encounter with terrorists in the Kathua district of Jammu and Kashmir.
In a post on X, Rahul Gandhi said that the solution to these attacks will come from strong action, not from hollow speeches and false promises.
“The news of the terrorist attack on an Indian Army vehicle in Kathua, Jammu and Kashmir, is extremely sad. While paying my emotional tribute to the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the motherland, I express my deepest condolences to the bereaved families. I pray for the speedy recovery of the injured soldiers. These cowardly attacks on our army are highly condemnable. The fifth terrorist attack within a month is a grave blow to the security of the country and the lives of our soldiers,” he said.
“The solution to the relentless terror attacks will come from strong action, not from hollow speeches and false promises. We stand firmly with the country in this hour of grief,” he added. (ANI)