Residents had been warned about attack
PATHANKOT: It was an attack that was anticipated by the security establishment and local shopkeepers had been cautioned about it well in advance.
And as per the anticipation, the attack did take place and locals in Dhaki Chowk woke up to the sound of gunfire and blasts at 3.30am when terrorists struck at the IAF base here.
“We were asked by the police to close down our establishments after abduction of an SP (on Thursday night) and recovery of his vehicle from near Palta Sahib Gurudwara (yesterday). It triggered fear among us of a possible terror attack,” said Rahul, who runs an invertor shop.
Along with other shopkeepers, Rahul also closed down his shop following the terror alert amid deployment of security personnel in the area around 6pm. “We immediately closed down our shops and went home as we feared a terror attack,” said Rahul, whose house is located close to the boundary wall of the Air Force Station.
Security establishment was on alert and apprehending an attack after an SP of Punjab Police was abducted by a group of men in army uniform on Thursday night.
“Intelligence inputs had been available of a likely attempt by terrorists to infiltrate into the military installation in Pathankot. In response, preparatory actions had been taken by the IAF to thwart any such attempt,” said an IAF statement. A team of NSG commandos was rushed here from Delhi on Friday night itself on directions of National Security Adviser Ajit Doval. Two army columns were also positioned to tackle the attack.