NEW DELHI, JUNE 17: The Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday handed over investigations into the recent terror attack on a pilgrims’ bus in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district to the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
Seven pilgrims among nine people, including three women were killed and scores of others injured as a bus carrying pilgrims from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi fell into a deep gorge after firing by terrorists near Pouni on June 9. The bus was on way to Katra at that time.
The decision came a day after Home Minister Amit Shah reviewed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir and also the preparations for the annual Amarnath yatra in two back-to-back meetings here.
The meetings were called in the wake of the terror attack on the bus in Reasi district and three other terror incidents in the Union Territory.
On June 11, terrorists fired at a joint checkpost of the Rashtriya Rifles and police at Chattergalla in Bhaderwah while a search party in the Gandoh area of Doda district was attacked on June 12, resulting in injuries to seven security personnel, including a policeman.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi too reviewed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir on June 13 where he directed officials to deploy the “full spectrum of counter-terror capabilities” after a spate of terror incidents, including the attack on the bus carrying pilgrims.
Shah on Sunday said the fight against terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir is in its decisive phase and recent incidents show that terrorism has been forced to shrink from highly organised acts of violence to a mere proxy war. He also directed security agencies to implement area domination and zero-terror plans in the Jammu division like they did in Kashmir to achieve success.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha, Army Chief General Manoj Pande, Army Chief-designate Lt. General Upendra Dwivedi, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, Director of Intelligence Bureau Tapan Deka, CRPF Director General Anish Dayal Singh, BSF Director General Nitin Agarwal, Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police R R Swain and other top security officials attended both the meetings held by Shah.
The Jammu and Kashmir Police have detained more than 50 people in connection with the Reasi terror attack and extended its combing and search operations to far off areas of Arnas and Mahore to track down the militants. The security has been beefed up across Jammu division following PM’s instructions for deployment of full spectrum of the counter insurgency apparatus.
