Army chief lays wreath, pays homage to soldier killed in Kupwara gun battle

Srinagar: Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi on Thursday laid a wreath and paid homage to Naik Dilwar Khan, who was killed in a gun battle in Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir.

The wreath laying ceremony was held at the Army’s Srinagar based Chinar Corps headquarters in Badami Bagh. Senior Army, civil, and police officers joined the wreath-laying ceremony.

“GeneralUpendraDwivedi #COAS laid wreath & paid homage to Naik Dilwar Khan, who laid down his life in the line of duty. #COAS and All Ranks of #IndianArmy salute his immense valour & sacrifice and stand firm with the bereaved family in this hour of grief,” Army’s Additional Directorate General of Public Information (ADGPI), posted on X.

Naik Khan, a resident of the Una district of Himachal Pradesh, was critically wounded during an encounter in the Trumkhan forests of frontier Kupwara on Wednesday and succumbed to his injuries later.

An unidentified militant was also killed during the encounter, which erupted on Tuesday evening when joint teams launched a combing operation in the Trumkhan forest area following an input.

While the exchange of fire has stopped since Wednesday, the combing operation in the area is still underway, officials said.