Kashmir attack: 'Safe state' myth blown to bits

BUS, ENOUGH: The ill-fated bus carrying the jawans was blown to smithereens.

Other stories in the section:

Orissa fallout: Christian schools, colleges shut across India

The institutes are shut as a mark of protest against the killings in Orissa.

• Shooting in dark: India hostage to security crisis?

• Tortured by cops, Bangalore youth fights for life

Featured Blog

Rajdeep Sardesai

Bhiwani to Beijing: Lessons from a journey

Featured Slideshows

Related Headlines

powered by

• Hindus: Soft targets of J&K terror
• Jammu hostage drama may not be an isolated attack
• Terror strikes Rajouri, 10 feared killed

Keywords: Kashmir Attack, Terror

Jammu: Just as security agents thought militancy was on its last leg, the recent blast in Srinagar has shattered that perception.

A powerful IED planted on the Srinagar-Baramulla road killed nine soldiers and injured 14 others, some critically. Their ill-fated bus was blown to smithereens.

“It was a transient carrier which is usually unarmed. The bus itself is protected. The explosion was directed towards the side of the vehicle. It was not a very large explosion but wasjust placed very effectively,” said Brigadier K A Muthana.

In the past few months, militants have engaged the police and the army in over a dozen attacks across Kashmir. But while these were initiated by the police, reports suggest the one on the highway was meticulously planned by the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen.

Though police have had major successes against militants this year, the militant ranks are believed to have swelled because of fresh infiltration.

Police say that's the biggest worry ahead of the autumn elections.