Dangri terror attack: Victim families block Jammu-Poonch highway; demand justice

PTI, Jun 12, 2023, 2:54 PM IST

Family members of the seven civilians killed in a terror attack in Dangri village of Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district in January this year blocked the Jammu-Poonch National Highway on Monday.

Demanding justice, hundreds of villagers marched in a procession from Dangri and blocked the busy highway near Muradpur, half-a-km away from the scene of the terror attack in Rajouri district. The victim families sought identification and arrest of the culprits behind the attack without any further delay, officials said. Terrorists had struck Dhangri village on January 1 and targeted villagers before fleeing the scene, leaving behind an improvised explosive device (IED).

While five people were killed in the firing by terrorists, two others died in the IED explosion the next morning. As many as 14 villagers were injured in the twin attacks.

On May 6, the army killed a terrorist during an anti-terrorist operation in the forested Kandi area of Rajouri. Some locals later identified the slain terrorist as one of the Dhangri village attackers. Carrying pictures of the slain civilians and chanting slogans in support of justice, the villagers staged a sit-in on the highway around 9 am on Monday and also burnt tyres, leading to traffic jams.

Senior civil and police officials rushed to the scene and are trying to persuade the protesters to disperse, officials said. Saroj Bala, who lost her two sons in the terror attack, said she had been waiting for justice for the last six months. “We have been hearing that the case has almost been solved, but there is no trace of the terrorists involved in the attack.

The terrorist supporters, who facilitated the attack, are also yet to be identified,” Bala, who was leading the protest, said. She had addressed a press conference in Jammu on June 5 and said “I simply want justice for my children”. Bala’s two sons — Prince and Deepak — were killed in the terrorist attack, leaving her the only survivor member in the family as she had lost her husband to a disease sometime back.

“Six months have passed since the attack happened, but no solid action has taken place till date,” she added.