Possibly two foreign terrorists involved in Ganderbal attack: J-K LG Sinha

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Monday said two foreign terrorists, who have possibly infiltrated from north Kashmir's Bandipora area, were involved in an attack that left seven people dead in Ganderbal district a day before.

A doctor and six labourers were killed when terrorists struck a tunnel-construction site on the Srinagar-Leh national highway in Ganderbal on Sunday, officials said.

The unidentified terrorists carried out the attack when the labourers and other staff working on the tunnel project at Ganderbal's Gund had returned to their camp late in the evening, they added.
 

Sinha said police and other security forces have been given instructions and full freedom to track down and eliminate the perpetrators of the heinous act.

"According to an initial investigation, two people with masks covering their faces -- both possibly foreign terrorists -- entered the mess of the company constructing the Z-morh tunnel and opened indiscriminate fire. Seven people were killed and four injured," he said.

Sinha further said both the terrorists reportedly infiltrated from the Bandipora area of north Kashmir. "They are being tracked and will be neutralised," he said.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha also said that the police and security forces have formulated a new strategy to deal with foreign terrorists who have infiltrated the Jammu region to disrupt peace.

"Our neighbouring country (Pakistan) has been trying for the past one and a half years to disturb the peace in the Jammu region, which has been calm for the last 15-16 years. Some foreign terrorists infiltrated from the Rajouri and Poonch areas, as well as from Kathua and Samba districts (to disrupt the peace and tranquillity of the region)," Sinha told PTI in an interview.

He noted that recently, there have been terror incidents in which soldiers were martyred. "The security forces and Jammu and Kashmir police have formulated a new strategy," Sinha said.

Spelling out the measures being taken to counter efforts to increase the reach of terrorism in the Jammu region, he said "Gradually, the Jammu and Kashmir police trained its personnel and increased their presence in these areas. The army and CRPF have also enhanced their presence, focusing on higher-altitude areas."

LG Sinha also highlighted that the unique weather and geography of Jammu, including maize crops in the fields, had posed challenges.

"Over the next two to three months, efforts will be made to eliminate these foreign terrorists," he added.

He further explained that as peace returned to the Jammu region in the past, the deployment of forces was reduced. "Our camps were also removed from the higher reaches," he said.

The recent surge in terror attacks in the Jammu region, south of the Pir Panjal range, has raised concerns among security agencies. Ground observations suggest a strategic shift by Pakistan's intelligence agency, ISI, which seems to be focusing more on Jammu than Kashmir.

In the Jammu region, 11 soldiers, including an airman of the IAF, were killed by the end of July. In comparison, three terrorists have been neutralized in Jammu. Since 2021, 34 soldiers have been martyred while 40 terrorists have been killed in the same period.