Three soldiers, woman killed as militants ambush army patrol
SRINAGAR: Three soldiers and a woman were killed when militants ambushed an army patrol in Shopian area of south Kashmir, police said on Thursday.
The army confirmed the strike and said three of its soldiers, including one from Kashmir’s volatile Anantnag district, were killed in the attack.
Five other soldiers, which include two senior officers of Lieutenant Colonel and Major rank were among the injured, sources said.
Police said eight army men of the 44 Rashtriya Rifles were injured when militants fired at an army patrol in Mulu Chitragam area of Shopian at around 2am on Thursday when the personnel were returning after a search operation in Kungnoo.
Three soldiers later succumbed to their injuries.
A woman also suffered bullet injuries in the brief exchange of fire and died on her way to the hospital.
This is the third time in 10 days that the army has come under attack in Kashmir.
A Major was killed and three militants gunned down in north Kashmir’s Handwara on February 14.
The same morning, three soldiers and a militant were killed in a gunfight in Bandipora, 57km away from Handwara.
After the attacks, army chief Bipin Rawat had warned that those who hinder counter-insurgency operations or display flags of Pakistan and the Islamic State in Kashmir will be considered “anti-national” and “face action”.
A civilian was killed in Kulgam as locals protested the killings of militants on February 13.
The state government has also asked local youth not to run towards the site of gunbattle and has declared a three-kilometre area around an encounter site as a no-go zone in Srinagar, Budgam and Shopian districts.
Security forces say locals rushing to the site of gunfights help militants to escape.
The restrictions will not apply to ambulances, medical and paramedical staff as well as government employees. NEWDELHI:The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a plea seeking a CBI probe into the alleged irregularities and corruption in the Madhya Pradesh Pre-Engineering Test (MPPET), which is organised by the Vyapam board.
The apex court said there was no merit in the plea, which had sought a direction for CBI probe in line with the ongoing investigation in alleged irregularities in admission for MBBS course through the Vyapam test in Madhya Pradesh.
“When there will be something, we will open up the facts,” a bench of justice Ranjan Gogoi and justice Navin Sinha told advocate Prashant Bhushan, who was appearing for petitioner Anand Rai, who claims to be a whistleblower in the scam.
Bhushan alleged that there were manipulations in the OMR (optical mark recognition) sheets of some candidates who had appeared in the MPPET and this matter should be investigated thoroughly by the CBI itself.
“So far as engineering entrance exam through Vyapam board is concerned, it has not been sent for CBI investigation. There were manipulation in OMR sheets,” he claimed.
The apex court had in July 2015 ordered transfer of probe into all Vyapam scam cases and the deaths allegedly linked to it to the CBI.
It had transferred the probe of all cases and alleged deaths connected to it from the Special Investigation Team(SIT) and the Special Task Force (STF) to the CBI as the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government had acceded to the demand.
Congress had alleged that various persons linked to the Vyapam scam have died under mysterious circumstances, a charge refuted by the state government.
Recently, the apex court had upheld cancellation of admission of 634 medical students in the MBBS course through Vyapam test for adopting unfair means, terming their action as “an act of deceit”.
EIGHT ARMY MEN WERE INJURED WHEN MILITANTS FIRED AT AN ARMY PATROL IN MULU CHITRAGAM AREA OF SHOPIAN AT AROUND 2AM ON THURSDAY THE APEX COURT HAD IN JULY 2015 ORDERED TRANSFER OF PROBE INTO ALL VYAPAM SCAM CASES AND THE DEATHS ALLEGEDLY LINKED TO IT TO THE CBI