Neeraj Sood

Srinagar, June 23: A colonel was killed in an encounter with militants in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara district last night, becoming the highest ranking army officer to have gone down fighting this year.

In another gunfight, a lieutenant was injured in Poonch when his column came under fire from a group of infiltrators who were being provided cover by Pakistani armymen.

The army said Col Neeraj Sood, the commanding officer of 18 Rashtriya Rifles, was killed at Saiwan village in Kupwara district during an operation he was leading.

“There were reports about the presence of militants in the area. We have lost Col Neeraj Sood in the encounter, which started at 9.15 last night,” Vineet Sood, the colonel, general staff, at the 15 Corps headquarters, said.

Vineet Sood said no militant had been killed in the operation, which is still going on. The army said it had sent reinforcements to the area.

Col Neeraj Sood, who was from Delhi, is survived by his wife and 11-year-old daughter.

The army said the encounter spot in Kupwara was mountainous and had a thick forest cover, which made it difficult for them to hunt down militants.

In May, Yoginder Rajbar, a major, was killed during an encounter with militants at Chittibandi village in Bandipora district.

In the other encounter, in Bhanot area of Poonch last night, Lt Nikhil Basmeet took a bullet when a group of infiltrators attacked his column.

The army said both sides fired and the Pakistani troops gave cover to the militants. Basmeet is in a stable condition, the army added.

It is not clear whether the militants are still hiding in the area or have returned to Pakistan. The security forces had yesterday killed Abu Zubair, the deputy chief commander of the Lashkar-e-Toiba in Jammu and Kashmir, in an encounter in Sopore.