A member of the Village Defence Group (VDG) was on Sunday killed in a gunfight with terrorists in the Udhampur district of Jammu.
The deceased, Mohammad Sharief (48 years), sustained critical injuries in the exchange of gunfire with terrorists and passed away later, police said.
This incident marks the second terrorist attack in the Jammu region within a week.
In a post on X, ADGP (Jammu Range) Anand Jain said: “The J&K Police swiftly responded to intelligence inputs on terrorists near the Basantgarh police station in Udhampur district. A clash ensued as the police confronted the hiding terrorists, resulting in one VDC member sustaining injuries. A joint operation, involving the Army and the CRPF, is underway.”
A joint team of security forces has cordoned the area and a search operation has been launched to flush out the terrorists.
After receiving inputs on the movement of suspicious individuals late Saturday evening, the J&K Police activated the security grid in the Basantgarh police station limits.
On Sunday morning, policemen deployed at a police picket, accompanied by VDG members, advanced towards the Chochru Gala heights around 7.45 am. A face-off ensued between the police party and a group of hiding terrorists. One VDG member sustained injuries in the initial exchange of firing.
It is worth mentioning that about 26,000 residents from terrorism-prone hamlets have received training from the Army in handling firearms to protect their respective areas. VDGs were established in all ten districts of the Jammu division during the peak of terrorism in 1995.
The terrorist attack in the Jammu region, which has largely maintained peace so far, came within days of the targeted killing of a government employee by terrorists in the Kunda Top village in the Rajouri district last week.