Rocky stood like a rock, battled ultras single-handedly

If not for 25-year-old Rocky, it would have been “mayhem” in Udhampur on Wednesday as he single-handedly took on two terrorists spraying bullets on a Border Security Force (BSF) convoy.

The BSF convoy had reached Narsu Nala, about 14 km ahead of Udhampur on Jammu-Srinagar NH-1A, when a terrorist, later identified as Mohd Nomen, jumped on to the road and started spraying bullets at the bus.

Nomen first injured the driver and then tried to enter the bus while firing from his AK-47.
However, Rocky, the only armed jawan, held his fort preventing the terrorist from entering the bus.

“Rocky prevented the terrorist from entering the bus. The terrorist had a grenade in one of his hands while he was opening fire. Rocky continued firing even after he was hit by bullets. If Rocky did not prevent the terrorist from entering the bus, it would have been mayhem,” said BSF Director-General D K Pathak. Rocky was the lone armed personnel in the bus.

Rocky, who was profusely bleeding, then engaged the other militant (Mohd Naved who was later arrested) who had taken position on the adjoining heights along the road and was firing heavily on the bus.

Pathak’s comments came after the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) also rushed to unofficially claim credit that it is was their men who killed the terrorist.

“There is no confusion on who killed the terrorist. BSF man neutralised the terrorist. Rocky fired heavily. He positioned himself in such a way that the terrorist was shot,” said Pathak. “Rocky finished the whole magazine before he was martyred,” he added.

The BSF has their regular convoy, which travels between Jammu and Srinagar. “This convoy started from Jammu and after crossing from Jammu, two vehicles overtook and suddenly one terrorist came right in front of the road and started firing,” the BSF chief said.

Pathak also said that the BSF was not privy to any “specific” input about a possible militant strike in Udhampur. He said the bus ferrying 44 unarmed personnel got “isolated” from a convoy with a lone armed soldier (Rocky). In 20 years, he said there was no such attack on their convoy. Pathak said he would not like to draw any conclusions or similarities between the terror incident in Gurdaspur in Punjab on July 27 and the one near Udhampur.