Will give befitting reply, says India as six killed in Punjab attack

Dinanagar (Punjab), July 27: A senior police officer was among six people killed here early Monday when four terrorists who sneaked in from Pakistan opened random fire before storming a police station complex, sparking a fierce gun battle that shattered two decades of calm in Punjab. One attacker was killed. Superintendent of Police Baljit Singh succumbed to injuries suffered in the gunbattle between security forces and terrorists -- who were in military fatigues and said to be heavily armed -- holed up in the complex in Dinanagar, 15 km from the Pakistan border, officials said. As security forces have not been able to take control of the besieged complex, officials said the death toll may be more than the victims so far accounted for. The lone terrorist died in the police station. "We were hit by a burst of gunfire. I was hit on the shoulder," said a polce sub-inspector. "They are firing indiscriminately every five minutes." The clearly well-planned dawn attack took by surprise the small town of Dinanagar in Gurdaspur district, which borders Pakistan and which was once a hotbed of Sikh militancy. Gurdaspur also borders Jammu and Kashmir. In New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi soon went into a huddle with senior ministers. Punjab officials said that contrary to initial reports, no one had been taken hostage. Modi met Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. No details were available. But Parrikar earlier said that counter insurgency forces had reached Dinanagar. In an allusion to the terrorist belonging to Pakistan, Home Miniser Rajnath Singh told media persons: "If we are hit, we will give a befitting reply."