3 army jawans, 1 militant killed in gunfight in Kashmir

Three army troopers were killed in a fierce gunfight in Bochu village of south Kashmir Pulwama district on Friday morning. The Kashmir Inspector General of Police Abdul Ghani Mir confirmed to rediff.com that one militant has also been killed in the ongoing operation.  

A defence spokesman told rediff.com that troops of counter insurgency Rashtriya Rifles  surrounded the Bochu village near Tral in Pulwama district on specific information about presence of a group of heavily armed militants there.

“As the security forces were conducting searches, hiding militants opened fire at the surrounding troops resulting in on the spot death of three soldiers,” the spokesman said.

“More reinforcements have been rushed to the village and the cordon around is being strengthened. The nearby forest area is also being searched,” she added.

High tension has gripped the village. “Troops are busy in searches,” the spokesman said.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, which comes a day after security forces gunned down a Lashkar-e-Tayiba militant in Srinagar.