Security forces chased down the terrorists to a nearby under-construction house in Srinagar.
Highlights
- A CRPF jawan dies in encounter at Karan Nagar in Srinagar
- Major attack averted, after alert sentry opened fire at terrorists
- Fire exchange on between terrorists, security forces in Srinagar
For the second time in as many days, security forces in Jammu and Kashmir had to fight off a suicide terrorist attack, this time in the heart of Srinagar that left one soldier dead. The attack came just a day after the forces neutralised all four terrorists who struck an army base in Jammu, killing five soldiers and one civilian.
Monday's attack was thwarted after an alert Central Reserve Police Force or CRPF sentry spotted heavily armed men at Karan Nagar near the CRPF Batallion headquarters before daybreak and fired at them, forcing them to run away. Security forces immediately launched a search operation and the attackers were chased down to a nearby under-construction house.
A gunfight began at 10 in the morning in which a CRPF soldier was killed. A Jammu and Kashmir policeman was also injured.
"The encounter is going on since morning, they have been cornered," said Ravideep Sahi, the Inspector General of the CRPF Srinagar Circle. The terrorists were still holed up in the house and intermittent firing continued when last reports came in.
The attackers were hiding in a building near the SMHS hospital from where Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist Naveed escaped last week. The series of attacks in the main cities of Jammu and Srinagar comes on the death anniversaries of the parliament attack convict Afzal Guru and JKLF founder Maqbool Bhat.
In the state assembly, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti pitched for a dialogue with Pakistan.
"For talking about dialogue with Pakistan to save lives of people, I will be called anti national tonight but it does not matter. We will have to talk and war is no option," Mehbooba Mufti said.
Speaking in Jammu, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman hit out at Pakistan for sponsoring terror attacks in the state. "The terrorists had some local support and had handlers across the border," she said in her briefing over the Jammu terror attack.
"Pakistan will pay for its misadventures," she said, issuing a stern warning to the country.