CRPF duo injured in Anantnag grenade attack

SRINAGAR: Two CRPF troopers were injured in a grenade attack by terrorists in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district on Wednesday evening. In north Kashmir’s Kupwara district, a Hizbul Mujahideen associate was arrested on Tuesday night with a grenade meant to be lobbed at security forces.
Earlier this week, police intercepted a truck ferrying a huge cache of Pakistan-smuggled arms at Jawahar Tunnel in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district and arrested two Lashkar-e-Taiba overground workers, DIG (south Kashmir) Atul Goel said on Wednesday.
A senior police officer said terrorists lobbed a hand grenade at a CRPF team stationed at the commercial area of Lal Chowk, in which the two jawans of 40 Bn sustained splinter injuries. They were taken to a hospital for treatment. A search operation was launched in the area immediately after the attack to trace the perpetrators.
On Tuesday night, a joint team of J&K Police and Army’s 47 RR launched a search operation in Kupwara district on receiving “reliable information that a youth, Altaf Ahmed Bhat of Kupwara’s Kanthpora Sogam area, had come in contact with Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists who were luring him to pick up arms,” a police officer said.
Anticipating arrest, Altaf fled home but was apprehended soon after. During questioning, police learnt that Altaf had hidden a hand grenade which was given to him by his mentors, and was meant to be used to attack security forces as a test to join militant ranks. The explosive was later recovered from a nearby nullah (canal) in the presence of a magistrate, the cop said.
Earlier this week, police seized a cardboard-laden truck clandestinely transporting a huge cache of arms smuggled from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir through the Line of Control in Jammu’s Samba region. A US-M4 carbine, an AK-47 rifle, six Chinese pistols and a sizeable quantity of other arms and ammunition were recovered from the vehicle at Jawahar Tunnel on Srinagar-Jammu highway in Kulgam district. The truck driver and helper — identified as Lashkar affiliates Bilal Ahmad and Shahnawaz Ahmed from Shopian — were arrested, DIG Goel said on Wednesday, adding that the overground workers were tasked with transporting the weapons to south Kashmir which were meant to fuel terror activities in Kashmir Valley.
A special investigation team was formed to ascertain whom the weapons were meant to be delivered to. “Prima facie it looks like the pistol consignment was meant for the recruitment of new youth into militancy. Investigations are on and more details will come to the fore,” the DIG said, adding that at least three more suspects were detained based on intelligence inputs from Ramban in connection with the matter.
The security forces have so far been able to contain the local terrorist recruitment after it witnessed a sharp rise earlier. “We will not allow the recruitment to gain ground again,” DIG Goel added.