Army captain killed, civilian injured in gunfight with terrorists in J&K’s Doda

A captain from the Army’s counter-insurgency unit Rashtriya Rifles (RR) was killed and a civilian injured in an ongoing exchange of fire with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda district on Wednesday amid a spike in terror activity mostly south of the Pir Panjal mountains, which divide Jammu and the Kashmir Valley. Four terrorists were also believed to have been gunned down.
In a post on X, the Army identified the Captain as Deepak Singh of the 48 RR and said it stands firm with his bereaved family in the hour of grief. “All Ranks of #WhiteKnightCorps salute the supreme #sacrifice of #Braveheart Capt Deepak Singh who succumbed to his injuries. #WhiteKnightCorps offers deepest condolences and stands firm with the bereaved family in this hour of grief.”
Officials said three bullets hit Captain Singh on the right side of his chest and despite being critically injured, he kept instructing his team until he was rushed to a hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.
The exchange of fire began around 7:30 am when a cordon and search operation resumed in a jungle. Terrorists holed up in the Akar forest near Patnitop in the Udhampur district had earlier crossed into Shivgarh Dhar in Assar of Doda after a brief exchange of fire with the security forces.
The security forces recovered three blood-soaked backpacks and US-made M-4 carbines from the site. “One of the terrorists was injured…We have recovered US-made M-4 carbine and ammunition that was kept in three backpacks. It appeared that the terrorists abandoned some of their weapons and ammunition to flee with their injured colleague to escape the security forces,” said a police officer.
Doda police superintendent Javed Iqbal said the operation was on. “We have found bloodstains at the encounter site. We suspect three to four terrorists are holed up in the area.” Security forces also deployed drones to locate the terrorists.
A local resident said the gunbattle site is close to Baggar on the Jammu-Doda national highway. The vehicles of the security forces lined up the highway.
There has been a spate of terror attacks in the Jammu region over the last three months. The Union home ministry told Parliament that 28 people, including civilians and security personnel, have been killed in 11 terror-related incidents and 24 counter-terror operations so far this year.
On Tuesday, Northern Army Commander Lt Gen M V Suchindra Kumar visited Doda and Kishtwar to review the anti-militancy operations in the Chenab Valley region. The security forces have launched a search operation in the upper reaches of the Doda, Kathua, and Udhampur districts to track down terrorists believed to have infiltrated from across the border.
On August 10, two soldiers and a civilian were killed in a gunfight between the terrorists and the security forces in Kashmir Valley’s ’s Anantnag. Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday convened a meeting on the rising terror-related incidents in Jammu and Kashmir ahead of the 78th Independence Day.