NEW DELHI: Two personnel were killed and one other injured after militants attacked a patrol party of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) on Saturday in Srinagar’s Pantha Chowk area on the Srinagar-Jammu highway, sources said.

The Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant group claimed responsibility for the attack.

“Mujahideen of Lashkar-e-Taiba attacked a CRPF party at Pantha Chowk on Srinagar-Jammu highway,” LeT spokesman Dr Abdullah Ghaznavi said in a statement.

A CRPF official in Srinagar said militants armed with AK-47 rifles fired indiscriminately around 5:50pm on a vehicle, which was part of a CRPF patrol party, near Pantha Chowk bus stand in Srinagar.

“Soldiers were critically injured in the attack,” the official said.

“The injured soldiers were evacuated to the military hospital at Badami­bagh, Srinagar, where Sub-Inspector Sahab Shukla and other jawan succumbed to their injuries.”

“Another jawan injured in the attack is undergoing treatment,” he added.

A civilian sustained minor injuries in the attack following which police, paramilitary and army personnel launched a joint combing and search operation to track down the assailants.

The Srinagar-Jammu highway was closed.

By arrangement with the Times of India

Published in Dawn, June 25th, 2017