CISF Head Constable Opens Fire at Sewa Project in Kathua, Four Colleagues Killed
A CISF Head Constable allegedly shot dead four colleagues at the Sewa-II Hydroelectric Project in Kathua, Jammu and Kashmir, on Tuesday evening.
Four Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel were killed on Tuesday evening after a Head Constable of the force allegedly opened fire on his colleagues at the Sewa-II Hydroelectric Project in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district.
The incident took place around 7 pm at the project site in Mashka village, in the Basohli area of the district. According to an initial report received from the spot, the accused, a Head Constable who joined the force in 2009, fired at his colleagues following a verbal altercation among them. The cause of the dispute has not yet been established.
The deceased have been identified as Assistant Commandant Ankit Kumar Pandey, Sub-Inspector Lakshman Singh, Constable Rafiq Ahmed and Constable Sandeep Kumar. The injured personnel were first taken to the NHPC Hospital on the Himachal Pradesh side, where all four succumbed to their injuries.
The accused Head Constable has been handed over to the local police for further investigation. The CISF said the circumstances that led to the altercation and the subsequent firing remain under investigation, and that it is also setting up an internal inquiry to ascertain what led to the incident. Further details, including the sequence of events and the weapon used, are awaited.
Separately, search operations were launched earlier on Tuesday at about a dozen locations across the border districts of Rajouri, Poonch and Kathua following reports of suspicious movement. The operations were carried out jointly by the Jammu and Kashmir Police, the Army, the Central Reserve Police Force and the Border Security Force in remote, densely forested stretches of the hilly districts.
The searches covered Peer Khana, Potha Narota and Andh villages in Kalakote, and Thanda Pani and Kansar in the Sunderbani areas of Rajouri; Panjwari, Kathera and adjoining areas in Kathua; and Upper Kasbalari, Theratopa, Nagal Gali, Kalaban and Patnateer in the Mendhar sector of Poonch. No contact had been established with the suspected persons at any of the locations. The forces maintained heightened vigilance and continued coordinated operations to track down any suspected individuals and rule out the presence of terrorists or anti-national elements.