A day after four heavily armed suspected Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists were killed in an encounter on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway in Nagrota, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a security review meeting with top officials and Home Minister Amit Shah.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla and top intelligence officials attended the meeting, ANI reported, quoting sources.
After the meeting, Modi said security forces defeated a nefarious plot to target grassroots level democratic exercises in Jammu and Kashmir, referring to DDC polls.
"Neutralising of 4 terrorists belonging to Pakistan-based terrorist organisation Jaish-e-Mohammed and the presence of large cache of weapons and explosives with them indicates that their efforts to wreak major havoc and destruction have once again been thwarted," he said in a tweet.
"Our security forces have once again displayed utmost bravery and professionalism. Thanks to their alertness, they have defeated a nefarious plot to target grassroots level democratic exercises in Jammu and Kashmir," he added.
According to report, agencies have established that four terrorists were planning a big attack on the anniversary of 26/11 Mumbai terror attack. They were killed on Thursday in Jammu and Kashmir's Nagrota.
A truck, carrying the terrorists, who had recently infiltrated the India-Pakistan border, was stopped at Ban toll plaza in Nagrota area at 5 am for checking, but the driver left the vehicle and fled, the police official said.
Immediately, the CRPF and police personnel moved to search the vehicle. On receiving the news, Inspector General of Police (IGP), Jammu, Mukesh Singh rushed to the spot and directed the terrorists to surrender.
In a video released by police, IGP Singh is seen announcing through a public address system, "Whosoever is hiding in the truck, should lay down their weapons and come out with both hands up."
The terrorists ignored the announcement, leading to a fierce gunbattle, officials said.
Other security forces also joined in the encounter as the terrorists lobbed grenades and fired arms. In the three-hour-long gunbattle, four terrorists were killed and two policemen injured, IGP Singh said.
The truck, loaded with rice sacks, caught fire during the encounter. The bodies of the terrorists, hiding in a cavity within the truck, were recovered, he said.
A huge cache of arms, ammunition and explosive material, including 11 AK rifles, three pistols, 24 magazines, 29 grenades and six UBGL grenades, was recovered, the IGP, Jammu, said.
Besides, medicines, explosive material, bundle of wires, electronic circuits and bags in huge quantities were recovered from them.
"The terrorists had come to execute a big plan which has now been foiled," IGP Singh said.
The recovered weapons indicate that the terrorists belong to JeM. They had a big terror plan, the J&K L-G Manoj Sinha said, adding efforts were on to track down the truck driver.
A senior police officer said, it seems the terrorists infiltrated from across the International Border (IB) in Jammu region before boarding a Kashmir-bound truck.
(With PTI inputs)
