After the bodies of three civilians who went missing on Thursday (6th March) were found in a river in the Malhar area of the Kathua district of Jammu on Saturday (8th March), Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh informed that the civilians were killed by terrorists.
“The brutal killing of three youths by terrorists in the Bani area of district #Kathua is extremely sad as well as a matter of great concern. There appears to be a deep conspiracy to spoil the atmosphere in this peaceful area. We have discussed this matter with the concerned officials. The Union Home Secretary himself is reaching Jammu so that the situation can be assessed on the spot. I am confident that it will be ensured that such incidents do not happen again and the confidence of the people remains firm,” the Union Minister wrote on X.
जिला #Kathua के बनी क्षेत्र में 3 युवाओं की आतंकियों द्वारा निर्मम हत्या अत्यंत दुखद होने के साथ-साथ एक बड़ी चिंता का विषय है। इस शांतिपूर्ण क्षेत्र में माहौल बिगाड़ने के पीछे गहरा षड्यंत्र दिखाई देता है।
— Dr Jitendra Singh (@DrJitendraSingh) March 9, 2025
इस विषय में संबंधित अधिकारियों से हमारी चर्चा हुई हैI केंद्रीय गृह सचिव…
The victims including a minor have reportedly been identified as Yogesh (32), Darshan (40) and Varun (14). As per reports, the victims were last seen at a wedding function about three days ago. While returning from the function from Billawar’s Dehota village to Surag village in Malhar, they got separated from other guests near Inchhu forests. On reaching Surag, the other guests informed the police after noticing that they were missing. A search operation was launched to locate them.
BJP MLA Satesh Sharma raised the issue of the civilians going missing in the state assembly on Friday. “I want to inform you about the three missing civilians. We want to seek answers from the government, ” he said.
A massive search operation was launched by the Indian Army and the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Jammu and Kashmir Police after the missing report was filed. Notably, one of the missing persons called his family two days ago saying that they lost their way in the forest. Security forces discovered their bodies in a river flowing through the Inchhu forests on Saturday.
Outraged by the killings of the civilians, people in Billawar declared a bandh and held protests. Paramilitary forces have reportedly been deployed to pacify to keep the situation under control. BJP MLA Dr Rameshwar Singh, who visited the sub-district hospital at Billwar to meet the families of the deceased on Saturday (8th March) night was manhandled by angry protestors.
