Srinagar: One Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel was today (Nov 18) killed and three were injured when militants attacked their camp in high-security cantonment area, triggering a heavy exchange of fire with security personnel.

A suicide squad of Al-Mansoorian outfit, a shadow of Lashker-e-Toiba, came in a car to the camp of 62nd Battalion of CRPF, housed in a hotel in Indiranagar locality of Batwara, not far away from the Army 15 Corp headquarters at Badamibagh, and fired from automatic weapons at around 18:15 hours (IST), official sources said.

The CRPF personnel retaliated and a heavy exchange of fire continued for about two hours till 20:00 hours (IST) following which the militants escaped in their vehicle, they said.

One CRPF jawan was killed and three were injured, one of them critically, in the attack, official sources said.

Army and CRPF sealed the area following the attack and launched a joint operation to track down the militants, they said, adding that troops have also fanned out to nearby Sonawar, the gateway to the Army headquarters.

An Army spokesman said the target of the militants was not the 15 Corp headquarters as the troops deployed on guard duty reported firing near a cinema house, approximately 100 metres away from its main gate.

The CRPF camp is housed in Hotel Scindia, near which a number of other CRPF camps are located.

A person claiming to be spokesman of Al Mansooriyan told PTI on phone that the attack on the camp was carried out by its cadre.

The attack on CRPF camp comes at a time when the force has started taking over from Border Security Force (BSF) the lead in counter-insurgency operations in the Valley.

PTI