2 Army Officers, One DSP Killed In Kashmir Attack, Families Devastated

A Colonel of the Rashtriya Rifles, an Army Major, and a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP) were among three officers killed in an encounter with terrorists in Kokernag area of south Kashmir’s Anantnag district.

This is the second major terror strike in Kashmir in the past over a month.

The families of the officers are grappling with the loss. The three officers have been identified as Colonel Manpreet Singh and Major Ashish Dhonack of 19 RR, and DySP Muhammad Hamayun Muzamil Bhat of Jammu and Kashmir Police.

Reinforcements have been rushed to the spot. The first hint of the violence came through a Kashmir Zone police post that said, “encounter has started in the Kokernag area of Anantnag. Officers from Army and J&K Police injured. Details shall follow.” The joint operation by the army and the police, according to the Indian Army, was started following specific information about the presence of terrorists.

Greater Kashmir , quoting sources, has reported that the search party by the senior officers came under fire leaving the three officers critically wounded. They were evacuated from the spot but succumbed to their injuries, the newspaper reported.

The banned Resistance Front, believed to be a shadow group of LeT, has claimed responsibility.