Special forces JCO killed during J&K encounter
Thursday’s killings triggered a massive operation combing by security forces in the Kuntwara and Keshwan areas of the Jammu region
A junior commissioned officer (JCO) of the special forces was killed in action and three soldiers were injured on Sunday, two of them critically, in the Kishtwar district of Jammu & Kashmir, when they engaged a group of terrorists who had kidnapped and killed two defence guards (VDGs) three days ago, officers aware of the matter said.
Thursday’s killings triggered a massive operation combing by security forces in the Kuntwara and Keshwan areas of the Jammu region. Commandos of the special forces had been on a trail to pin down the terrorists, who are believed to be three to four in number, officers said.
“The special forces were on their trail since Thursday and a gunfight broke out on Sunday morning around 11am in the Gidri Top area, near Chas, of Kishtwar. A JCO was killed in the encounter and three soldiers were injured,” said an officer aware of the development, asking not to be named.
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The deceased officer was identified as Naib Subedar Rakesh Kumar, of 2 Parachute Regiment (special forces), who hailed from Himachal Pradesh.
An intelligence officer said that the terrorists managed to escape from the spot following the ambush. “Critically injured soldiers were later airlifted in an army helicopter to Command Hospital in Udhampur,” he said, adding that additional reinforcements were also airdropped in the area.
Security forces on Friday recovered the bodies of the two VDGs a day after they were abducted and shot dead by terrorists in Kishtwar amid protests, shutdown, and outrage over the killings. On Thursday morning, 45-year-old Nazir Ahmad and 33-year-old Kuldeep Kumar, both residents of Ohli-Kuntwara village, took their cattle to graze in the Munzla Dhar forest. They did not return till late evening, prompting a joint search operation by the army, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), and the state police.
Amid the frantic search, Kashmir Tigers, an offshoot of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), said that it had abducted and killed the two men.
On Sunday morning, the army’s Nagrota-based White Knight Corps said in a post on X it received specific inputs about the presence of the same terrorists in the area. “Based on specific intelligence input regarding the presence of terrorists, a joint operation was launched by security forces in general area Bhart Ridge, Kishtwar. This is the same group which had abducted and killed 02 (two) innocent villagers (village defence guards). Contact was established and firefight ensued,” the post said.
About six hours later, the handle put out another post that said: “#GOC #WhiteknightCorps and all ranks salute the supreme sacrifice of #Braveheart, Nb Sub Rakesh Kumar of 2 Para (SF). Sub Rakesh was part of a joint #CI operation launched in general area of # Bhart Ridge #Kishtwar on 09 Nov 2024. We stand with bereaved family in this hour of grief”.
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On Sunday, Ksihtwar district police also posted on X: “Encounter begins at Keshwan Kishtwar between terrorists and Security forces. 3/4 terrorists believed to be trapped. This is same group which killed the 2 innocent villagers. Further details to follow, it added.” Officials had earlier said that security forces were conducting a massive cordon-and-search operation in Kishtwar and using drones, sniffer dogs and helicopters to track the terrorists behind the killings.
The area where Sunday’s encounter took place lies between Keshwan and Kuntwara, called Gidri Top, near Chas. Gidri Top is around 5km from Pondgwari rivulet, surrounded by dense forest and hills, where the bodies of two guards were found on Friday morning. The distance from Ohli Kuntwara to Munzla Dhar is around 4.5km. However, it is a steep climb of almost 90 degrees.
On Saturday, the mortal remains of two VDGs were buried and cremated at the Ohli Kuntwara village in Kishtwar. Ahmed’s daughter Saima said that she had identified her father from the photograph released by the terrorists. “Avenge the killing of my father. We are three brothers and a sister. Our father was the only breadwinner,” she said.
Kashmir Tigers had released a statement after killing the VDGs. “Some ignorant people are joining the VDGs… They should learn from today’s incident and not be a part of VDGs. Otherwise, they will also meet the same fate,” the terror group said in a letter, as it also shared a photo of the bodies of the two blindfolded men.
This year, 16 security personnel, 10 civilians and three VDGs have died in separate attacks in Jammu. Security forces have also gunned down 13 terrorists in the region. In Kashmir, nine personnel and 15 civilians have died in terror attacks. Security forces have killed 24 terrorists in the Valley in the same period.
This week’s gunfights came against the backdrop of a string of terror strikes and encounters in J&K after its first elected government since the revocation of Article 370 in 2019 was sworn in on October 16. On November 3, 12 civilians were injured after terrorists lobbed a grenade in a busy Srinagar market. A day earlier, three terrorists, including a top Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) commander, were killed after parallel encounters broke out in Anantnag and Srinagar. It was the first major gunbattle between terrorists and forces in Srinagar in two years. On October 24, two soldiers and two civilian porters were killed after terrorists ambushed an army convoy in the Baramulla district of Kashmir. Four days before that, seven people were killed when terrorists opened fire on a construction site camp in the Ganderbal district of the Valley.
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“I salute the courage and supreme sacrifice of the Army’s braveheart, Nb Sub Rakesh Kumar, who laid down his life in the line of duty in Kishtwar. His selfless service to the nation will always be remembered. My heartfelt condolences to the family of the martyr,” lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha said.
Leader of the opposition in J&K legislative assembly and senior BJP leader Sunil Sharma also expressed condolences over the death of the officer. “Heartfelt tributes to Naib Subedar Rakesh Kumar of 2 Para (Special Forces), a braveheart who made the ultimate sacrifice in a joint counter-terrorism operation in Kishtwar’s Bhart Ridge area on November 9. His selfless service to the nation will never be forgotten,” he wrote on X.
Former deputy chief minister Kavinder Gupta said the spike in terror activities across the region is a grave cause of concern. “Though security forces have intensified their counter insurgency operations and will wipe out terrorists, such attacks are not possible without the support of locals... The government must break the entire ecosystem of terror network in the region,” he added.