Baramulla attack: Terrorists fled using civilians as shield, claims police

Baramulla: Terrorists, who attacked two adjoining camps of Army and the paramilitary force in Jammu and Kashmir’s Baramulla district, fled the spot using civilians as shield, the police said on Monday.

Police said the security forces could not retaliate with heavy firing fearing civilian casualties.

Briefing the media here, district Senior Superintendent of Police Imtiaz Hussain said that an investigation is underway to ascertain which outfit the terrorists belonged to.

“There were around three-four terrorists. They attacked a BSF sentry post, following which the Army and the BSF responded in kind, which dissuaded the terrorists from entering the Army camp. But one BSF jawan was killed and another injured during the operation,” he said.

However, he admitted a heavy response could not be given as the area surrounding the camps were heavily populated by civilians, and they could not risk any casualties.

“There is a lot of civilian population around the camps, which is why the security forces were not able to respond in a heavy manner. Otherwise there would have been a lot of civilian casualties. Taking advantage of the dark and using civilians as shield, the terrorists ran off,” Hussain said.

IG BSF, Punjab Frontier Anil Paliwal said that an alert has been sounded on the border in the wake of Baramulla attack and ceasefire violation in Poonch, assuring that the situation is under control.

Meanwhile, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the current situation at the Line of Control (LoC). Doval also reportedly briefed the Prime Minister about preparedness of the security forces and the Army.

Minister of State for Home Affairs, Kiren Rijiju, has assured that Indian security forces are capable of dealing with the situation, while Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh asserted that he had faith in the Army to give a befitting reply.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar chaired a high-level meeting to discuss the next course of action with the three service chiefs.

Earlier in the day, Pakistan violated ceasefire in Shahpur along the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch. Heavy mortar shelling and firing was reported from the Pakistani side.

Pakistan has stepped up cross-border firing after the Indian Army conducted surgical strikes on terror launch pads in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK).

PTI