CCTV footage of the October 20 terror attack on employees of a construction firm in Kashmir’s Ganderbal district shows two militants, carrying an American-made M4 carbine assault rifle and an AK-47, spending around seven minutes at the workers’ camp before fleeing the spot, it is learnt.
Officials said the footage suggests they were aware of the topography of the area.
Seven men — six from outside Kashmir and a local doctor — were killed in the attack. They were working for infrastructure company APCO Infratech, which is constructing the Z-Morh tunnel on the Srinagar-Sonamarg highway.
The attack took place at the camp around 7.25 pm, when some employees were sitting in the dining area and others were heading for dinner. The camp is just below an approach road to the tunnel, and is surrounded by barren mountains on one side and the Srinagar-Leh national highway on the other.
Senior police officers as well as officers of the National Investigation Agency and other security agencies visited the spot following the attack. “There is no CCTV camera installed at the place where they first opened fire. CCTV captured the area where they headed next — the two can be seen entering and opening fire. They also attacked the mess before coming out and firing on more workers,” a source said.
Initial investigation has also revealed that the attackers put a grenade inside a vehicle parked at the camp before shooting the driver. “After recording the statements of the injured persons and a security guard who managed to escape, it came to light that initially, the workers thought that some people were bursting firecrackers. But within two-three minutes, they realised it was a terror attack,” the source said.
The attackers, a source said, were carrying an M4 carbine assault rifle and an AK-47, and 37-40 used cartridges were recovered from the spot. “Security agencies and the local police are questioning local villagers and trying to find out details of the terrorists’ local handler, who helped them conduct a recce before the attack. We are also trying to get details of both the attackers from our database,” the source said, adding that the attackers fired at every area where there was light since power at the camp was cut during the incident. (INDIAN EXPRESS)
