New Delhi/Chandigarh: In the first major terror strike in Punjab in nearly a decade, three suspected fidayeen terrorists of a Pakistan-based terror outfit, either the Laskhar-e-Tayyaba or the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), dressed in Army-style fatigues, struck in Punjab’s Gurdaspur town on Monday morning, killing eight persons, including three civilians and superintendent of police (detective) Baljit Singh, a Punjab provincial service officer, before being slain themselves in a shootout with the security forces.
The attack also left two home guards and two policemen dead. The toll may rise as some of the 15 injured were in serious condition. India has sharpened vigil on the India-Pakistan border even as a high alert has been sounded across the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi took stock of the situation with national security adviser Ajit Doval even as Union home minister Rajnath Singh promised to give a “befitting reply” to the perpetrators of the terror strike.
In what is being seen as a major intelligence and “border security” lapse, the three fidayeen terrorists, carrying a GPS, sophisticated weapons and “made-in-China” grenades, went on the rampage at around 5 am, first spraying bullets at a moving bus, then entering the nearby Dinanagar police station and finally holing up in an adjacent vacant building where a gun battle with security forces lasted 12 hours.
Clearly showing that the attack was “pre-planned and coordinated’, five live bombs were also found on the Amritsar-Pathankot railway track. The train services on the route were immediately suspended. As the issue rocked Parliament on Monday, with Lok Sabha members cutting across party lines expressing concern and demanding a detailed response from the government, home minister Rajnath Singh said he would make a statement on the issue on Tuesday.
A blame-game ensued with Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal throwing the ball in the Centre’s court, saying “securing the international border” is the responsibility of the Central government and demanding that the India-Pakistan border be sealed. The government has asked the BSF to look into how the border was breached.
