The Indian Army’s Northern Command chief, Lt Gen. Upendra Dwivedi, has said retired Pakistani soldiers are part of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir as local recruitment is drying up.

Lt Gen. Dwivedi’s assertion came amidst army claims that the two Pakistani militants killed in Rajouri during a two-day gunfight were highly trained and were possibly trained in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The officer was speaking at the wreath-laying ceremony for the slain soldiers in Rajouri.

The two militants, including alleged mastermind Quari, killed two army captains and three soldiers in Rajouri in the gunfight.

Quari, according to the army, was also the mastermind of the killing of seven civilians on January 1 in Dangri, the murder of five soldiers on May 5 in Kandi and the killing of two civilians on December 18, 2022, in Rajouri TCP.

Lt Gen. Dwivedi was asked by reporters whether the presence of highly trained militants suggested special forces from Pakistan could also be part of militant ranks.

“When we tried to identify them (slain militants), we found some of them were retired faujis. Pakistan’s effort is that since there are no local recruits, foreign terrorists want to come here. Our effort is to kill all the foreign terrorists,” the chief of the strategic Northern Command said.

The top army officer shared no further information. If true, the presence of retired Pakistani soldiers in the militant ranks is likely to be a challenge for security forces.

The army officer said some 20 militants could still be operating in the Rajouri-Poonch area, also called Pir Panjal, and vowed to bring the situation under control within a year with the help of locals.

The presence of the militants in the region is also going to be a challenge for the forces as the area was literally free of militancy for nearly two decades before the 2019 scrapping of Jammu and Kashmir's special status.

Lt Gen. Dwivedi said the death of two militants was a major setback for Pakistan.

“These two dreaded terrorists had committed heinous killings for the past one year. We were not able to catch them as they were hiding, getting arms, ammunition and information from somebody,” he said.

Lt Gen. Dwivedi said the killings would raise the morale of residents who have been living in fear since the civilian deaths.

Recalling the sacrifice of soldier Sanjay Bisht, he said he had interacted with him on November 18 while presenting a commendation certificate to him for an anti-militancy operation.

“I told what his next action would be. He said in a week's time, he would do something. Here he is sacrificing his life,” Lt Gen. Dwivedi said.

Separately, Brigadier Soumeet Patnaik, who monitored the Rajouri operation, said the army faced sudden firing on November 22 as they were conducting searches. He said Captain M.V. Pranjal was the first to lose his life before trying to evacuate civilians caught in the gunfire.

Brig. Patnaik said Pranjal received a bullet in his head, leading to his death. He said militants tried to flee but soldiers relentlessly pursued them. "The firefight continued for a long time as soldiers closed in on the militants. Our three soldiers (including Captain Shubham Gupta) got injured. They succumbed to their injuries,” he said.

CRYING SHAME IN THE NAME OF SYMPATHY

Yogendra Upadhyaya, the Uttar Pradesh minister for higher education, science and technology, (on right, in cap) and G.S. Dharmesh, BJP MLA from Agra Cantt, pose for pictures on Friday with a bereft Pushpa Gupta whose son Captain Shubham Gupta was among the Indian Army soldiers killed in a gunfight with militants in Rajouri on Thursday.

Upadhyaya and Dharmesh each have a cheque in their hands — compensation for the son she has lost and whose mortal remains had not yet been brought home. “Meri pradarshani mat banao bhai, meri pradarshani mat banao (don’t make an exhibition out of me, brother, don’t make an exhibition out of me),” the mother begs. But the two men stay put, holding out the cheques in front of the cameras as a voice calls out, “Madam, madam”, appearing to ask her to pose.

Yogendra Upadhyaya, the Uttar Pradesh minister for higher education, science and technology, (on right, in cap) and G.S. Dharmesh, BJP MLA from Agra Cantt, pose for pictures on Friday. The Telegraph

“I don’t want any of this, I want only my Betu, I want only my Betu,” she cries, shaking her head and unable to even stand without support. But the two BJP leaders remain there, and continue to try to get photographed giving her the cheques. “Call my son Shubham. My world has ended,” she says.

The video of the interaction at Shubham’s home in Agra is viral on social media. Sources said that later the cheques totalling Rs 50 lakh were handed to someone in the family on behalf of the Yogi Adityanath government.

Our Special Correspondent