Confirming that the three missing persons, including a minor, have been killed by terrorists in Kathua district, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh on Sunday described it as “a deep conspiracy behind spoiling the atmosphere in this peaceful area.”

The Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan himself is reaching Jammu so that the situation can be assessed on the spot, Dr Jitendra Singh said.

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The minister wrote on X: “The brutal killing of 3 youths by terrorists in the Bani area of district Kathua is extremely sad as well as a matter of great concern. There appears to be a deep conspiracy behind spoiling the atmosphere in this peaceful area.”

‘We have discussed this matter with the concerned officials. The Union Home Secretary himself is reaching Jammu so that the situation can be assessed on the spot. I am confident that such incidents will not happen again, and the confidence of the people remains strong,” he wrote further.

Expressing concern over the terror incidents in the area, PDP President and former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti wrote on X: “The situation in Kathua is deeply alarming. In a short span of time nearly a dozen people from both the Muslim & Hindu communities have lost their lives. Five of them were allegedly chased by police and cow vigilantes which led to fatal accidents.”

she added: “Subsequently the bodies of two members of Hindu community were discovered followed by three more yesterday including the heartbreaking case of a fourteen year old. Tragically, while the police seem more focused on extracting false confessions from victims like Makhan Din, the real perpetrators are still at large.”

She further wrote in her post: “Approximately 30 individuals have been charged under the PSA or UAPA often with scant or no evidence. There are indications that certain disruptive elements possibly operating both within & across the border may be stoking communal tensions in this sensitive border district. The authorities must act swiftly yet judiciously to identify and bring the true culprits to justice ensuring that peace and communal harmony is maintained.”

Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan will today review the security situation in the union territory with a focus on making the Jammu division terrorist free.

Bodies of all the three civilians, including a minor, who mysteriously went missing on Thursday in the far-flung Lohai Malhar area of the Kathua district, were on Saturday spotted lying below a deep waterfall in the Billawar area.

Security forces spotted the bodies using drone surveillance. The TRF, a terror group affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) that has been active in the forest area, has claimed responsibility for the killings.

The three persons Varun Singh (14), Yogesh Singh (32) and Darshan Singh (40) of Dehota village in Billawar were on their way to another village to attend a marriage when they went missing. The incident has triggered tension in the area.

Following reports of their disappearance, security forces, including the Indian Army, CRPF and the Special Operations Group (SOG) of J&K Police, launched a massive search operation in the upper reaches of Billawar.

The issue was highlighted in the legislative assembly on Friday by MLA Billawar, Satish Kumar, who raised concerns over the missing persons. Sharma raised a point of order, informing the House about the tragic incident in Billawar’s Lohai Malhar area.

It is worth mentioning that two civilians, Shamsher Singh (37) and Roshan (45) were earlier found killed with their throats slit on 16 February near a waterbody in the outskirts of the village Kohag in the Billawar area.

The two had gone to collect firewood from the jungle but did not return home. Their bodies were found with the help of drones the next day.

The Billawar area of the Kathua district has in the recent past witnessed terror strikes at Army personnel and convoys. Nine soldiers, including a Captain, were killed in two separate terrorist attacks. Thereafter, the police questioned a number of suspects in the upper reaches of the area.