On April 12, two Jawans of the Indian Army were detained by the security agencies in Bathinda Army Station shooting case, as per a report by DD News report. On the other have, police have said that two people in civilian clothes were behind the attack. Four jawans were shot and killed in the shooting incident that happened at around 4:35 AM. No other soldiers were injured. A search operation was conducted by Quick Reaction Teams and the area was cordoned off and sealed. In a statement, defence minister Rajnath Singh said an inquiry into the matter is underway.
The incident has been described as ‘fratricide’ by officials, which means the killing of a member of one’s own group, or the killing of one’s brother or sister. This means that two jawans are suspects in the case. However, it is not clear if the two jawans detained for questioning are the same jawans who are prime suspects in the case. Reportedly police have said that the shooters are still at large.
The four victims of the unfortunate event have been identified as Gunners Sagar Banne (25), Kamalesh R (24), Yogeshkumar J (24) and Santosh M Nagaral (25). None of them was from Punjab. The families of the deceased Jawans have been informed by the Army.
Though the Punjab Police denied any terror links in the case, the investigation is being carried out from all possible angles. On the hand, Bathinda SP D Ajay Gandhi said in a statement that two people in civilian clothes opened fire at the Army Station and an FIR against two unknown attackers has been filed.
#Bhatinda | Four army jawans killed in firing inside #BathindaMilitaryStation
— DD News (@DDNewslive) April 12, 2023
Police have ruled out a ‘terrorist attack’ angle in the incident. pic.twitter.com/ln9ZjTo6v9
Reports suggest that the shooting incident happened due to some internal reason, and the enquiry will also focus on an INSAS rifle and 28 bullets that went missing two days back. It is believed the shooting was carried out using that rifle as empty cartilages of INSAS rifles were found at the scene. Of the 28 missing bullets, 19 empty shells have been recovered, but the rifle is still missing.
#UPDATE | Police registered a case against two unknown persons in Bathinda Military Station firing case. https://t.co/DqINC57BKz
— ANI (@ANI) April 12, 2023
“It is not a terror incident, it is an internal issue, appears to be fratricidal issue. Our investigation teams have reached with all forensic equipment,” a Punjab Police official said.
In a press release, Army said, “The area continues to be sealed off and joint investigations with Punjab Police are being coordinated to establish the facts of the case. All aspects including the possible case of involvement of an INSAS rifle along with 28 rounds reported missing two days back are being ascertained.”
#WATCH | This is not a terrorist incident. Probe is being done. An FIR was lodged 2-3 days ago regarding the missing rifle and the matter is being investigated. We are in touch with Army officials: Surinder Pal Singh, Additional DGP on Bathinda Military Station firing incident pic.twitter.com/Ud4dR4Yaia
— ANI (@ANI) April 12, 2023
While police along with military police are investigating the matter, no arrests have been made so far. However, the terrorism angle has been ruled out.
The military base at Bathinda is located about 280 km northwest of the national capital Delhi, and the Pakistan border is less than 100 km west of the town.
