Senior police official Baljit Singh challenged the terrorists with his service pistol when they sneaked into the Dinanagar police station in the early hours of the day. (File)
Superintendent of Police Baljit Singh who laid down his life fighting heavily-armed terrorists from Pakistan in Gurdaspur last month, is among three policemen of Punjab chosen for the top police medal on the eve of Independence day.
His two other colleagues, Inspector Balbir Singh and Head Constable Tara Singh, have also been accorded the top bravery medal for displaying raw and exemplary courage in the face of imminent danger posed by the terrorists.
Baljit Singh, a Punjab provincial police service officer, has been awarded the President's Police Medal for Gallantry posthumously for undertaking a dare-devil challenge of combating three suicide attackers who attacked a police station in Dinanagar area of the border district on July 27.
The SP of the detective branch challenged the terrorists with his service pistol when they sneaked into the police station in the early hours of the day after they crossed over from across the International Border with Pakistan running along Gurdaspur.
Balbir and Tara were also present in the police station when the terrorists laid a siege and the policemen displayed good presence of mind and raw courage to pin them down.
Singh's father also laid down his life while combating militants some years back. In the pre-dawn attack, the terrorists, suspected to be members of either Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) or Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), in army fatigues first targeted a roadside eatery, then sprayed bullets on a passenger bus and later barged into Dinanagar police station.
Seven persons--three civilians, Baljit Singh and three home guards-- were killed by the terrorists. A Punjab police SWAT commando team later eliminated the terrorists after a long-drawn operation.