Kishtwar encounter: Paratrooper succumbs to injuries as search operation enters day 2 in J-K

Kishtwar:

A Paratrooper of Indian Army's Special Forces (SF) succumbed to his injuries in an encounter in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar, said officials on Monday, adding that the search operation in the area has entered day 2. The soldier has been identified as Havildar Gajendra Singh.

The encounter broke out in the Sonnar village near Mandral-Singhpora in the Chatroo belt on Sunday after specific inputs about some terrorists of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) in the area. The encounter left eight soldiers injured after the terrorists threw a grenade suddenly, officials said, adding that the difficult terrain has made the operation difficult.

"The #GOC, White Knight Corps and all ranks pay solemn tribute to Havildar Gajendra Singh of the Special Forces, who made the supreme sacrifice while gallantly executing a Counter Terrorism operation in the Singpura area during the ongoing Operation TRASHI-I on the intervening night of 18-19 Jan 2026," said Indian Army's White Knight Corps in an X (formerly Twitter) post. 

"We honour his indomitable courage, valour and selfless devotion to duty and stand firmly with the bereaved family in this hour of profound grief," it added.

The security forces have now deployed additional forces in the area, including teams of Jammu and Kashmir Police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). The entire area has also been cordoned off, the White Knight Corps said in another X post, adding that the troops remain deployed to dominate the area. The officials are also using drones and sniffer dogs to hunt down the around two to three terrorists who are trapped in Kishtwar.

This is the third encounter between security forces and terrorists in the Jammu region this year. The previous encounters were held in the Billawar area of Kathua district on January 7 and 13, respectively. It should be noted that security forces have remained on alert in the region in view of the Republic Day, as intelligence reports have claimed that Pakistan is trying to infiltrate more terrorists into the region through the International Border (IB) and Line of Control (LoC).

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