By Ajit K Dubey
Srinagar Jammu and Kashmir India January 30 ANI In the Pulwama encounter in which four terrorists were killed in an operation led by the Indian Army on Saturday, the Garud Special Forces operatives played an important role as the officer continued to fire at the terrorists despite being hit twice in the firefight, sources in the security establishment said.
Four years ago, the Garud Commandos were in the limelight for a major operation when they carried out two major operations in 2017 where they killed eight terrorists.
Sources said that security forces including the 55 Rashtriya Rifles of the Army, Jammu and Kashmir police and the 55 Rashtriya Rifles of the Army, and Kashmir police carried out a cordon and search operation in the Naira village Pulwama gen area around 7 pm.
After some time, the forces were able to pinpoint the presence of terrorists inside a particular house based on inputs from locals.
The forces immediately evacuated the civilians in and around the house and ensured that they were sent to a safe distance.
The forces tightened the cordon around the house which forced the terrorists to start firing at the forces to escape from the location.
While trying to break the cordon, the terrorists came in direct line of fire with Army and Garud personnel, which resulted in a heavy gunfight from both sides.
Sources said that the Squadron Leader Sandeep Jhanjaria of the Garud Special Forces was hit by a volley of fire and was hit with two bullets on his chest and left arm.
Sources said that the officer continued to engage the terrorists until all three of the fleeing militants were eliminated.
One of the terrorists hiding there came out and started firing on the Garud troops party, where Corporal Anand was hit by a bullet while the troops tried to look for more terrorists in the house.
The forces immediately neutralized the fourth terrorist.
The Army Headquarters has been attached to Garud Special Forces operatives and send them on attachment to the Rashtriya Rifles units that carry out counter-terrorist operations on a daily basis to help the Garud Special Forces gain experience in real combat.
In the 2017 operations in Hajin, the Guards were part of the 13 Rashtriya Rifles operations while they were with the 55 Rashtriya Rifles in the encounter on Saturday.