The truck was intercepted by QRT of J&K Police for checking which prompted the truck driver to flee and militants opening fire at police who were later killed in an encounter

New Delhi, December 28

The Jammu and Kashmir Police alongwith security forces shot dead four militants travelling in a truck  on National Highway-44 near Sidhra bridge near Jammu.

The Jammu Police informed that the militants hiding in the truck were heavily armed. The identity of the dead militants is being established.

The truck driver went absconding when the police stopped the truck for checking. The truck driver took advantage of the fog and fled while several teams are hunting for him.

According to the police,  a Quick Response Team on the national highway noticed unusual movement of a truck and started following it. As the vehicle reached the naka at Sidhra bridge around 7 am, the police signalled it to stop and asked the driver to step out. The driver responded but escaped, taking advantage of the dense fog.

The police and security forces then started searching the truck. The militants hiding inside to open fire, which led to retaliatory firing by the search parties. 

The security forces immediately cordoned off the vehicle and stopped the movement of vehicular traffic on that stretch of the highway. During the exchange of fire, the militants were killed.

It is to be noted that Union Home Minister Amit Shah is reportedly holding a high-level meeting to review the security in J&K. The meeting is being attended by J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Director General of Police Dilbagh Singh, among other senior officers from Jammu and Kashmir.

In view of the upcoming Republic Day, the J&K Police are on high alert and every area of the UT is being scanned while police deployment has been doubled up.