Defence Minister Rajnath Singh offers prayers at Amarnath shrine

Defence minister Rajnath Singh, who is on a two-day visit to Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir, visited the holy cave of Amarnath to pay obeisance and perform Puja.

Reports said, Singh, who was accompanied by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat and Army chief General MM Naravane, spent about an hour at the cave shrine.

“Feeling extremely blessed after praying at Shri Amarnathji Holy Cave in Jammu and Kashmir,” he tweeted.

The Defence Minister’s visit to Amarnath shrine comes at a time when the Army on Friday said it has ‘credible inputs’ that suggest militants plan to target ensuing Yatra on a stretch of Srinagar-Jammu national highway.

On Friday, Singh visited Leh where he reviewed security in the aftermath of standoffs with China along the Line of Actual Control, including the killing of 20 Indian soldiers by the PLA in the Galwan Valley on June 15. After his visit, he signalled that China might not agree to fully resolve the crisis in Ladakh and, in that event, India would not hesitate to use force.

After Ladakh visit, he arrived in Srinagar on Friday afternoon, where he reviewed the overall security situation in Jammu and Kashmir at a high-level meeting.

Officials said the senior security officials apprised the Defence Minister about the situation along the Line of Control with Pakistan as well as on anti-militancy operations. There have been increasing incidents of unprovoked ceasefire violations by Pakistan along the LoC in the past few months.