Shaurya Chakra recipient’s house, Army picket targeted in Rajouri

Arjun Sharma

Jammu, July 22

A terror attack on the house of a Shaurya Chakra recipient in the remote village of Gunda in Rajouri district was foiled on Monday as an Army column stationed nearby swung into action and launched a retaliatory strike. The terrorists also opened indiscriminate firing in the direction of the Army picket before fleeing into the deep forest area.

A civilian and a soldier were also injured in the incident that took place around 3 am. A group of ‘two to three’ ultras struck at the house of a Village Defence Committee (VDC) member Parshotam Kumar. The President of India had recently conferred the Shaurya Chakra on Kumar for helping in the elimination of a terrorist last year.

An Army picket was installed near his house after the security forces received inputs that terrorists might strike in the village. Similar pickets have been installed in other villages of Rajouri and Poonch districts after a spate of attacks in the region.

An official spokesperson of the Army said terrorists attacked a VDC member’s house. Anticipating the threat to a VDC member, tactical teams swiftly intervened, ensuring no harm to the VDC member or his family, he said.

Taking advantage of the dark and the forest area, the terrorists — who were allegedly operating in a group of two or three — fled the spot. Later, massive anti-terror operations were launched in the area.

Special Operations Group (SOG) of the J&K Police, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and units of the Army were rushed to the forest area to take part in the search operation. The spot of the foiled terror attack is close to the Reasi district, where terrorists’ movement has been reported multiple times.

Sources in Army said the terrorist group might have approached the house of Parshotam Kumar, who was instrumental in killing a trained terrorist in August last year, for which he was also awarded the Shaurya Chakra earlier this month.

They further stressed that finding specific information about the VDC member’s house was not possible without local support. The police have already started searching for leads regarding the Overground Workers (OGWs), who might have pinpointed towards the house of Parshotam Kumar.