Top J&K Officer Raj Kumar Thapa Killed After Pak Shell Hits House in Rajouri
Just a day earlier, Thapa had accompanied the J&K Deputy Chief Minister on a tour of the district.
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Raj Kumar Thapa, Additional District Development Commissioner of Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, was killed in the wee hours of Saturday, 10 May, when a Pakistani artillery shell struck his residence in Rajouri town.
According to reports, he was inside his home when the shell hit during cross-border shelling. He succumbed to his injuries on the spot.
Just a day earlier, Thapa had accompanied the Deputy Chief Minister on a tour of the district and had participated in an official virtual meeting chaired by Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.
(Photo: Facebook/Sunita Kamal Kishore)
Just a day earlier, 55-year-old Thapa had accompanied the Deputy Chief Minister on a tour of the district and had participated in an official virtual meeting chaired by Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.
Omar Abdullah took to X to express his condolences. “Devastating news from Rajouri. We have lost a dedicated officer of the J&K Administration Services. I’ve no words to express my shock & sadness at this terrible loss of life. May his soul rest in peace.”
CM Abdullah also visited his family on Saturday.
CM Abdullah also visited his family on Saturday.
(Photo: X/Tanvir Sadiq)
According to The Indian Express, at least two civilians were also killed in Rajouri the same night.
Residents across Jammu and Kashmir, including in Srinagar, Jammu, Udhampur, and Rajouri, reported waking up to loud explosions as Pakistani forces targeted civilian and military areas along the Line of Control. Heavy shelling was also reported from Akhnoor, Gurez, Uri, Hamirpur, and Pallanwala.
"Pakistan’s blatant escalation with drone strikes and other munitions continues along our western borders. In one such incident, today at approximately 5 AM, Multiple enemy armed drones were spotted flying over Khasa Cantt, Amritsar. The hostile drones were instantly engaged and destroyed by our air defence units," the Indian Army said in a statement on Saturday.