Army soldier, Pakistani intruder killed in fierce gunfight at LoC in Jammu and Kashmir

Srinagar: The Indian Army battled a group of Pakistani intruders believed to be the members of the neighbouring country’s Border Action Team (BAT) in a fierce clash along the Line of Control (LoC) in Kupwara district of northwest Kashmir valley early Saturday, officials said here.

They added that one “intruder” was killed and two others fled to Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) amid intense fighting.

Five Indian soldiers, including a captain, were injured while repelling the attack on a forward military post in Kamkari area of Machael sector of Kupwara. One of them, Rifleman Mohit Rathour, later succumbed at 92-Base Army Hospital in Badami Bagh Cantonment in Srinagar, they said.

However, a statement issued by the Srinagar-based army’s 15 Corps – also known as Chinar Corps – confirmed that only two soldiers were injured and said one of them died in hospital later. “Chinar Warriors salutes his immense courage and sacrifice, expresses its deepest condolences and stands in solidarity with the bereaved family,” it said.

The incident took place a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing the 25th memorial ceremony held at Drass to pay tribute to Indian soldiers killed in the 1999 Kargil war, warned Pakistan that its “evil designs” would never succeed and that India would defeat “any terrorist challenge”.

Calling Pakistan the ‘aaqa’ (master) of terrorism and ‘sarparast’ (patron) of terrorists’, the prime minister said the neighbouring country had not learnt any lessons from its ‘misadventures’ in Jammu and Kashmir which turned into complete debacles in the past and continued to harbour terrorists and wage a proxy war against India.

The Chinar Corps, in a statement issued in Srinagar while giving details of the latest encounter along the LoC, said, “Taking advantage of bad weather and poor visibility along the LoC in Machael sector, a group of two to three armed persons crossed the LoC and fired at a nearby Army forward post.

The alert troops responded vigorously and in the ensuing exchange of fire, one Pakistani intruder was killed and the arms, ammunition and other war items found on him were recovered. “The identification and affiliation of this Pakistani national are being verified,” the statement said.

“During this intense exchange of fire, two of our brave soldiers also sustained serious injuries and were accordingly immediately evacuated to Base Hospital Srinagar. Unfortunately, one of these brave soldiers succumbed to his injuries. The other brave (heart) is responding well to treatment and care and is currently stable,” he added.

The Army also said, “In the past too, similar infiltration attempts, actively aided and abetted by the Pakistan Army, have exploited the thick vegetation and poor visibility conditions, but have always, as today, been successfully foiled and disrupted. The Indian Army is steadfast in its resolve and commitment to uphold the sanctity of the LoC and defeat the nefarious and hostile designs of the Pakistan Army.”

Initial reports said a junior army officer and four other soldiers were injured, two of them critically, in a gunfight with infiltrated militants in Macheal sector. Reports citing army sources in Kupwara said the gunmen’s intrusion had been foiled but the exchange of fire was continuing.

The reports also said that a PoJK resident was caught in the crossfire and killed instantly. According to the reports, a group of three intruders threw a grenade and then fired their automatic rifles at an Indian Army forward post early on Saturday, to which the Army responded, triggering the gunfight. The report said that two intruders managed to return to PoJK amid the intense gunfight and a third was shot dead by Indian troops.

The Chinar Corps said in a message on ‘X’: “There was an exchange of fire with unidentified personnel at a forward post in Kamkari in Machael sector on the LoC. One Pakistani was killed while two of our soldiers were injured and have been evacuated. Operations are underway.”