Jammu, October 1: A large number of enthusiastic people came to vote at the Malhar polling station in Kathua.
Similar scenes occurred in other places. Barely two days after the encounter between security forces and terrorists in Kathuakog village, active polling scenes were witnessed in remote areas of Malhar in Kathua district and in neighboring Bani and Bilawal districts.
In this encounter, a police chief was killed, a DySP and an ASI were injured and an unidentified terrorist was neutralized. Voter enthusiasm can be seen from the fact that voter turnout at three polling stations located near the site of the clashes was as high as 66.57%, even as troops continued to carry out anti-militant operations in the area.
Clashes broke out in the Kog area on Saturday and the exchange of fire continued till Sunday. However, just two days after the encounter, the democratic festival in the hilly and remote area where Koger is located has not been affected.
Koger village comes under the jurisdiction of Malhar police station in Kathua district and falls under the jurisdiction of Bilawal and is also adjacent to Bani area.
Both Bani and Bilawal sub-divisions of Kathua district are considered terror-affected and riot-affected areas, with multiple incidents taking place and intelligence and information on the presence and activities of terrorists.
The Jammu and Kashmir Police in Kathua district also released sketches of some terrorists believed to be present in the upper reaches of the district.
Bani subdivision of Kathua borders Bhadrwah of Doda district, while Billawar borders Dudubasan of Udhampur district Garh (Dudu Basantgarh) borders.
Machedi village area of the district, which also falls under Bilawal subdivision, was the scene of a deadly ambush attack on an army truck on July 8 in which five army personnel were killed.
This encounter and other terrorist threats failed to dampen the enthusiasm of people who turned out in large numbers to polling stations and exercised their right to vote. Among them, the turnout at Jogana polling station was over 66%, the turnout at Sadrota-A polling station was about 68%, and the turnout at Ria Sial was about 67%.
Meanwhile, the troops are conducting anti-militancy operations in Kathua district for the third consecutive day as they try to track down suspected terrorists who may be present in the area.
Follow us On Social Media Google News and Twitter/X
