Two Punjab Police personnel who were on duty at a checkpoint near the Indo-Pak international border were found shot dead under 'mysterious circumstances’'.
Meanwhile, a little-known militant outfit, Tehreek-e-Taliban Hindustan (TTH) based in Pakistan, has purportedly claimed the responsibility for the killing of these two police men by circulating posters on social media.
Sources said that Assistant Sub Inspector ASI Gurnam Singh and Home Guard jawan Ashok Kumar, who were on duty in Adian village under Dorangala police station in Gurdaspur district, were shot dead by unknown assailants late at night.
The bodies were discovered inside the room, which serves as an outpost.
It remains unclear whether they shot each other or if a third person was involved. A local discovered the bodies in the morning at the checkpoint.
The bodies were promptly shifted to Gurdaspur Civil Hospital for a postmortem examination.
A senior police official, on condition of anonymity dismissed this claim as he said that this outfit has no presence in Punjab or anywhere in the country.
"The poster might be a diversionary tactic to derail the investigations,’’ he said and added, "It is too early to say anything.’’
Deputy Inspector General (Border) Sandeep Goel, Gurdaspur Senior Superintendent of Police Aditya, Deputy Superintendent of Police Rajinder Manhas and other officers rushed to the spot.
Talking to TNIE, Goel said, "we are investigating all angles and accordingly, action will be taken, if at all anyone is involved in the case one will be dealt with. The forensics teams have examined the spot.’’
Senior Superintendent of Police of Gurdaspur Aditya said, "In the morning, we received information that two of our personnel had sustained gunshot injuries. The police have cordoned off the crime scene, with both technical and forensic teams present there, ‘’ he added.
Sources said the possible involvement of gangsters or terror elements was also being examined, and an alert has been sounded in the border areas.
Initial reports suggested that the two policemen may have entered into an argument, following which shots were fired.
Responding to reports suggesting that the two policemen may have shot each other following a dispute, a police officer, on condition of anonymity, said that the probe was still at a preliminary stage and no conclusions had been drawn so far.
Interestingly the Border Security Force (BSF) had adopted this Adhian village as a ‘Vibrant Village’. The area is considered sensitive and prone to incidents.
The Dorangla sector is frequently targeted by Pakistan-based state and non-state actors to push in drones carrying drugs, arms and ammunition.
It was the site of an attack by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militants on security forces and also lies close to the route used by a group of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) militants who went on to attack the Pathankot Air Force Station in January 2016, said sources and added that the BSF maintains a strong presence in the area, which is known for its vulnerability to cross-border smuggling of heroin, weapons and drone intrusions.
These outposts, maintained by the Punjab Police in close coordination with the Border Security Force, act as the second line of defence.
The area where the incident occurred lies about 2 km from the Indo-Pak border.
Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring today expressed grave concern over the killing of two Punjab Police cops near the border in Gurdaspur district, warning that this was an ominous development and must be taken seriously.
He also called for avoiding rushing to a conclusion over mere speculation without a thorough probe.
Warring recalled and reminded of a similar incident before the 2016 Pathankot terror attack, when a Superintendent of Police had been abducted and his vehicle was snatched.
This was followed by an immediate terror attack on the Pathankot airbase, he pointed out. He noted that the fact that the incident has taken place close to the border demands a thorough and comprehensive probe to reach to the bottom of the incident.