J-K: Two groups clash Samba district, 3 suffer gunshot injuries

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Officials in Jammu and Kashmir said that three men, including a Punjab resident, were injured in a firing incident following a clash between two groups near a bus stand in Samba district's Ramgarh sector along the India-Pakistan border early Monday, reported PTI.

Two Punjab residents were also detained in connection with the firing near the Rangoor bus stand around 4 am, they told the news agency PTI.

Senior Superintendent of Police Benam Tosh visited the site of the incident and he is supervising the investigation.

The officials said they are probing all angles, including drugs smuggling. Tosh said that "a firing incident had taken place, resulting in injuries to three persons. We are thoroughly investigating the matter".

Citing findings of preliminary investigations, the officials said the three Punjab residents in a Chandigarh-registered vehicle reached Rangoor in Ramgarh, and allegedly opened fire on some locals.

Old rivalry and enmity could be the reasons behind the clash and subsequent shooting incident, they said. Sunil Kumar (25) and Sunil Kumar (23), both locals, and Sunny Kumar (30) of Amritsar in Punjab suffered gunshot injuries and were admitted to the Government Medical College Hospital in Jammu, the officials said.

They said Satinderpal Singh and Jagpreet Singh, both residents of Taran Taran in Punjab, were detained in connection with the incident. Kali Dass, a local sarpanch, demanded a thorough probe into the incident.

Earlier in May, this year, two terrorists were killed in an encounter with security forces in Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir. The encounter took place near Pichnad Machil area of Kupwara district in north Kashmir, a police official said. "Two terrorists have been killed. The search operation is still going on," the official said. The identity and group affiliation of the slain terrorists was being ascertained, the official added.

On May 30, at least 10 people were killed and 30 injured after a bus they were traveling in skidded off a bridge and fell into a gorge in Jammu district, officials said. The bus was on its way to Katra from Amritsar. "The bus met with an accident in Jajjar Kotli area," the official said.

(With inputs from PTI)