6 killed as Army thwarts infiltration bid

Five militants and a trooper were killed in a fierce gun battle on the Line of Control (LoC) in Uri sector of north Kashmir’s Baramulla district as army foiled a major infiltration bid.

The encounter had started on Friday in Rampur sector of Uri, 100 kms from here, after the army launched an operation following inputs that a heavily armed group of militants has entered from the Pakistani side.

“After being challenged, the terrorists fired at the troops, triggering a gunfight in which one militant was killed on Friday and a soldier sustained minor injuries. Late Friday evening, contact was established again with the militants and four more ultras were killed, while we also lost one of our soldiers,” sources told Deccan Herald.
So far three weapons and three backpacks have been recovered from the scene of the encounter, they said.

However, the Army only confirmed the deaths of two militants so far.
“Only two bodies of the militants have been recovered so far from the site of the battle. The body of the second militant was recovered from the site of the gun battle Saturday,” Army spokesman said.

Bodies of three other militants were lying on the Pakistani side of the LoC, which the Army tried retrieving, sources said.

 “But due to heavy firing the Army has not been able to retrieve the bodies so far,” they said.

The slain soldier has been identified as Harpeet Singh while the injured trooper has been identified as Zarmal Singh of 8-Sikh Regiment.

A senior Army officer said the area has a robust counter-infiltration grid and the entry of the militants was detected within metres of the LoC.

This was the first time in nearly a decade that the militants attempted to infiltrate from Rampur sector of the LoC in Uri.

With the latest interception, the Army has so far thwarted six infiltration attempts this year along the LoC in Kashmir in which 15 militants were killed and two soldiers had died. Last year, the Army had killed 59 infiltrators, the highest in a decade.