Security forces continued searches in the forest area of Udhampur for the second day on Tuesday, a day after a policeman was killed in a gunfight there.
During the encounter on Monday in Soan village of the Majalta area in Udhampur yesterday, a policeman Amjid Ali Khan son of Bashrat Khan R/o Mendhar, Poonch was killed. Two policemen were also injured in the gunfight and they have been hospitalised.
“The operation was resumed in the morning today to track down the holed-up terrorists. The cordon has been further strengthened with deployment of additional troops,” a security official said.
He said a joint team of the Special Operations Group (SOG) of police, along with the army and the CRPF, is involved in the search operation.
The security men are using sniffer dogs to locate the movement of the terrorists.
Security forces had launched a search operation in Soan village of the Majalta area near forest area in Udhampur yesterday on a tip-off about the presence of three terrorists, believed to be affiliated with the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) outfit.
Udhampur’s Basantgarh lies on the route traditionally used by Pakistani terrorists to enter from the International Border in Kathua and move to Doda and Kishtwar districts in Jammu, and further into the Kashmir Valley.
The area has witnessed several encounters and terror incidents in the past.
Meanwhile, a wreath-laying ceremony for martyred SOG Jawan Amjad Ali Khan was held at District Police Lines Udhampur on Tuesday.
The wreath-laying ceremony was attended by Jammu and Kashmir DGP Nalin Prabhat, IGP Jammu zone Bhim Sen Tuti, along with Senior Police officers, CRPF and District Udhampur Administration, who paid rich floral tribute to the slain policeman.
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha paid homage to policeman constable Amjid Ali Khan.
“I salute the supreme sacrifice of our J&K Police Braveheart Ct. Amjid Ali Khan. The nation shall remain forever grateful to his exemplary valour and selfless devotion to duty. We stand in solidarity with the bereaved family of our martyr in this difficult hour,” the Lieutenant Governor said.