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Punjab Police took 11 hrs to counter 3 ultras

Last Updated 27 July 2015, 21:49 IST

The Punjab Police took almost 11 hours to eliminate three terrorists in Gurdaspur, raising questions on their ability to handle counter-terror operations. 

The elite NSG and Army commandos were on standby, waiting for the nod from the state to join the operations.

However, the Punjab Police were in no mood to share the burden as its top officers felt that it would affect the morale of their men. Director General of Police Sumedh Singh Saini is learnt to have conveyed his reservation over the NSG taking over the operations. NSG commandos have undergone special training in urban warfare. Only the Punjab Police will handle it, he apparently told the security establishment in New Delhi. He had the consent from the political leadership in the state to do so.

Saini is learnt to have told National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval to allow the state police to handle the situation. The mood in Punjab Police leadership was that if its police personnel were not allowed to handle it, it could have an effect on the morale of the force.  Saini and Doval enjoy good equations as they have operated together during peak Sikh militancy days.

The DGP felt that the attack happened in their police station and the terrorists have been holed up with no escape route. “So, they felt they should be allowed to carry out the operations and it was conveyed to New Delhi,” a senior official said on condition of anonymity. As questions were raised over prolonging the operation, a top minister in the Cabinet Committee on Security said the security personnel have been asked to try to catch at least of one of the attackers alive.

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(Published 27 July 2015, 21:49 IST)

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