Two Army officers and three soldiers were killed in action in the encounter between security forces and terrorists that broke out in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri on Wednesday morning.
In a social media post paying tribute on Thursday, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar revealed the names and posted the photos of two Captains and a Havildar who died during the gunfight.
"Capt MV Pranjal, Capt Shubham Gupta, Havildar Abdul Majid - 3 young men who served and sacrificed to defend us from terrorists," Mr Chandrasekhar posted with a folded hands emoji.
The Army later revealed the names of the other two soldiers as well, who have been identified as Lance Naik Sanjay Bisht and Paratrooper Sachin Laur.
Two Pakistani terrorists have also been killed during the operation.
According to news agency PTI, Captain Pranjal was from the 63 Rashtriya Rifles and was 29 years old. The son of a retired director of the Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL), Captain Pranjal, who hailed from Mysuru, did his schooling from Surathkal in Dakshina Kannada district and was an engineering graduate from the National Defence Academy.
Captain Pranjal lived in Anekal on the outskirts of Bengaluru and family members told PTI that his body was expected to arrive in the city on Thursday evening and his last rites will be performed at Bannerghatta near Anekal.
Expressing condolences on the officer's death, former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy posted on X, "Heartfelt tributes to Captain MV Pranjal, a proud Kannadiga, who lost his life during the military operation against terrorists in Rajouri, Jammu and Kashmir."
Captain Shubham Gupta was a resident of Agra district who joined the Indian Army in 2015 and was commissioned in 2018, according to news agency ANI. His first posting was in Udhampur.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath paid tribute to Captain Gupta on Thursday.
"Expressing his condolences to the bereaved family through his official X handle, Chief Minister Yogi wrote, Uttar Pradesh government is with the bereaved family members of the braveheart Captain at this hour of grief," the ANI report said, quoting a press release from the chief minister's office.
Havildar Abdul Majid hailed from Ajote in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch, Lance Naik Sanjay Bisht was from Halli Padli in Nainital, Uttarakhand, and Paratrooper Sachin Laur was from Nagaliya Giurola in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh.
The gunbattle began in the Kalakot forests of Rajouri on Wednesday morning and ended on Thursday evening. Search operations are now on.
One of the killed terrorists has been identified as Quari, a Pakistani sniper and weapons expert who held a high rank in the Lashkar-e-Taiba.
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