NC leader Omar Abdullah targets Centre over Doda encounter deaths

Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], July 17 (ANI): National Conference (NC) leader Omar Abdullah on Wednesday slammed the central government for continuous attacks in Jammu after four Indian Army soldiers, including an officer, were killed during an encounter with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district.
Abdullah said that the government claims that the militancy is almost over but however, this is not happening.
"In the last year, a series of continuous attacks has started in Jammu. There is hardly any area in Jammu that is free from militancy... What is the government doing? They have been claiming that the militancy is on its last legs. But we don't see that happening," he said.
"No one from the government has said what steps would be taken to stop the killings. I hope steps are taken to control the situation. The responsibility has to be set. Who is responsible for controlling the security situation? They (government) have to handle their responsibility," the NC leader added.
Four Indian Army soldiers, including an officer, were killed in action during an encounter with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district on Tuesday.
The encounter broke out between security forces and terrorists in the Desa Forest area in Doda on Monday evening. The soldiers killed in action have been identified as Captain Brijesh Thapa, Naik D Rajesh, Sepoy Bijendra, and Sepoy Ajay.
Earlier in the day, BJP MP Raju Bista and former Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla paid tribute to Captain Brijesh Thapa who lost his life in the Doda encounter.
Bista and Shringla paid tribute to Captain Brijesh Thapa at Bengdubi Military Station in Siliguri, Darjeeling.
While speaking with ANI, Bista said, "On behalf of the countrymen, I pay tribute to the brave martyr Brijesh Thapa. This is a very sad incident. At the age of just 27, he has made the supreme sacrifice. I want to tell his parents that 140 crore countrymen are their family."
The BJP MP further said that the people of Darjeeling have always been ahead when it comes to protecting the country. "Be it during the independence or after the independence, the youth of Darjeeling have always sacrificed their life for the nation. Such incidents make you disturbed and sad. I also want to say to Pakistan, 'baap baap hota hai aur beta beta hota hai, aur Hindustan baap hai.'"
Meanwhile, Shringla said, "It is a very sad incident that our youth from Darjeeling, who belongs to the Gorkha community, has lost his life in the service of the country."
He added, "Whatever I can do on behalf of the Darjeeling Welfare Society of which I am the president, for the family, for our community, if any scholarship is to be done in the society in his name, I talked about it." (ANI)