JCO Injured as Army Foils Infiltration Bid in North Kashmir's Uri

Srinagar: A Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) was injured in North Kashmir’s Uri sector during an infiltration bid that the Indian Army thwarted in the early hours on Saturday, officials said. 

According to a defence spokesperson based in Srinagar, Colonel Emron Musavi, the infiltration attempt by a suspected group of militants was foiled by an exchange of fire. The condition of the JCO, injured in the incident, is said to be stable. 

The militants have reportedly failed to cross the Line of Control (LoC) in the area which falls in the Baramulla district. 

The officer added that the group was supported by a Quadcopter believed to have been flown by the Pakistan Army but was also spotted and targeted by the Indian Army causing its retreat. 

The official claimed that the latest infiltration attempt by the militants, believed to be aided by the Pakistan Army, was carried out to create disturbance in the region hosting a major global event, G20, from May 22-24. 

“This desperate action by the terrorists, duly abetted by Pakistan Army, is yet another failed attempt to disrupt the G20 Summit and create disturbance in the Valley,” Musavi said. 

Following the incident, the security forces, however, have launched a major search operation in the area, including in the adjoining forests, to track any presence of militants.  

The spike in militancy-related incidents is a challenge given the upcoming G20 Tourism Working Group Meeting in Jammu and Kashmir. Several militant groups have threatened action against the summit, including recent attacks in Rajouri-Poonch areas in which at least ten Indian Army soldiers were killed in two separate incidents. 

The security agencies have tightened vigil across the union territory as the global event nears, incredibly close to the proposed venues in Srinagar and the tourist destination of Gulmarg in North Kashmir. 

The incident on Saturday is one of the many recent infiltrations reported along the LoC, even as a fragile ceasefire agreement is holding up between India and Pakistan. At least seven suspected infiltrators have been killed in separate incidents since January along the LoC. The security agencies have also indicated a spike in cross-border incidents. 

The fresh bid also comes when security forces are tracking attackers – under Operation Trinetra - of the recent attack in Rajouri’s Kandi forest since last week. Another search operation was launched in Poonch after locals noticed a “suspicious movement” of suspected armed persons in the town.