Kathua, April 1: Jammu and Kashmir Police have detained six members of a local family, including four women, for allegedly providing assistance to the militants involved in the last week’s deadly encounter in the Hiranagar area of Kathua district.
The encounter left four policemen dead and a few security personnel injured. Two terrorists were also killed in the gunfight.
During the subsequent investigation, authorities identified a family suspected of offering shelter and logistical support to the militants before and after the assault.
According to police sources, the detained individuals are accused of supplying essential resources and aiding the movement of the militants.
Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police Nalin Prabhat and Inspector General of Police (IGP) Bhim Sen Tuti on Tuesday visited Kathua district and reviewed the ongoing combing operation to track down three terrorists who escaped after a brief encounter with security forces last night, officials said.
DGP Prabhat, along with IGP Tuti and Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Shiv Kumar Sharma, arrived at the Panjtirthi site in Kathua where the operation is underway, they said.
He took a walk through the riverine and mountainous belt to back his men engaged in one of longest drawn operations.
The operation, led by the Special Operations Group (SOG), Army, and CRPF, has entered its tenth day. Last Thursday, two terrorists were killed, and four police personnel lost their lives in the encounter in the Saniyal area of the district.
Security forces are continuing their search to neutralize any remaining threats.
The officials said the three terrorists are believed to be from a group that had its first face-off with security forces in the Nursery area near the International Border on March 23. All of the terrorists had managed to escape.
Four days later, security forces engaged them in an encounter in a forest area of the Sanyal belt of Kathua when two terrorists were eliminated, and the rest managed to flee. During this exchange of fire, four policemen were also killed and three others injured.
With the hiding terrorists changing their locations in the jungle, the security forces have launched a multi-agency operation to track them down.
The search operation was intensified early on Monday morning with aerial surveillance and sniffer dogs being deployed, culminating into a fresh encounter in the night. A night cordon was laid to ensure that the three terrorists holed-up in the forests do not escape, sources said late on Monday. (With PTI inputs)