Union Minister Jitendra Singh and Congress Chief Mallikarjun Kharge React to Soldiers’ Deaths in Jammu and Kashmir
Union Minister Jitendra Singh expressed deep concern after four soldiers, including an officer, lost their lives during an encounter with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda district. Singh stated, “Deeply disturbed by the reports of armed encounter in Dessa area of district #Doda in my Lok Sabha constituency. Words fall short of condoling and condemning the martyrdom of our Bravehearts. Let all of us join together to defeat the nefarious designs of the enemy and maintain the peace and harmony for which Doda has always been known for.”
Meanwhile, Congress Chief Mallikarjun Kharge also expressed his distress over the deaths. He said, “Deeply distressed by the martyrdom of 4 brave Army soldiers, including an officer, in a terror encounter in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda. Our heart goes out to the families of our bravehearts, who made the supreme sacrifice in the service of Bharat Mata. Our thoughts and prayers are with the injured, and we wish them a speedy and complete recovery. No words of strong and unequivocal condemnation will suffice for these acts of violence being perpetrated by cowardly terrorists.”
Kharge further criticized the government’s handling of security, stating, “The spate of terror attacks that has gripped Jammu and Kashmir in the past 36 days, needs careful recalibration in our security strategy. Modi government is acting as if everything is ‘business as usual’ and nothing has changed. They must know that increasingly Jammu region is bearing the brunt of these attacks. We cannot endanger our National Security by indulging in false bravado, fake narratives and high-decibel whitewashing. As a nation, we have to collectively fight the scourge of cross-border terrorism. The Indian National Congress stands strongly with our valiant Armed Forces.”
The Indian Army used a helicopter to carry out a search operation in the forests of Doda as the hunt for terrorists in the region continues. A joint operation was launched by the Army and Jammu and Kashmir police following an exchange of fire with terrorists in the Dessa area. Additional troops have been called in to tighten the cordon.
Earlier, Jammu and Kashmir Police recovered old-rusted arms and ammunition from a terrorist hideout in the Reasi district. The recovery items included 30 rounds of AK-47, one magazine of AK-47 rifle, and one HE-36 hand grenade. This comes against the backdrop of recent terror attacks in the Jammu region, including the attack on an army convoy in Kathua and encounters in Doda and Udhampur.