Two Special Police Officers (SPOs), identified in the latest reports as Babi Chand and Rashpal Kumar, were found dead in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district on Thursday, November 12, a day after they went missing while on duty. The two were posted with the Jammu and Kashmir Police’s Special Operations Group (SOG) at Kiyar village in Dachhan and were travelling towards an Army post in the Dharna-Marwah area when they failed to reach their destination.
Their bodies were recovered with bullet injuries, while their service weapons were not found, prompting authorities to examine a possible militant angle. However, officials have not yet conclusively established how the two were killed or who was responsible.
Bodies Recovered Thursday
The bodies of the two personnel were recovered from the remote, forested Dachhan area early on Thursday, officials said. Their deaths came less than a day after a large-scale search operation was launched following their disappearance. The discovery of bullet injuries on the bodies, along with the absence of their service weapons, has raised questions about what happened during their movement through the area. Authorities are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the deaths.
Journey To Army Post
Chand and Kumar were attached to the SOG and were based at a camp in Kiyar village. According to officials, they left the camp on Wednesday to travel towards an Army post in Dharna-Marwah. Other reports said they were travelling to relieve personnel from the Army’s 17 Rashtriya Rifles at a temporary operational base in the Basnan area of Inderwal. They did not reach their destination, after which security forces began searching the surrounding area.
Gunshots Reported Nearby
Initial reports on Wednesday said gunshots were heard in the forested area between Kiyar and Deharna around the time the two personnel went missing. An SOG team and other security personnel subsequently moved into the area to trace them. However, authorities had cautioned against immediately linking the disappearance to militant activity, with a police officer telling Hindustan Times that it would be premature to draw such a conclusion before the facts emerged.
Possible Militant Angle
The recovery of bullet-riddled bodies and the fact that the personnel’s service weapons were not found have now led officials to examine a possible militant connection. Importantly, this remains a line of investigation and not a confirmed finding. No authority has publicly identified an attacker or militant group as being responsible for the deaths. Maintaining that distinction is important while the investigation is underway.
Remote Terrain Adds Risk
The incident took place in the mountainous Dachhan-Marwah belt, an area characterised by dense forests and difficult terrain. Security forces have conducted counter-insurgency operations in Kishtwar in recent years, while the region’s remoteness and limited connectivity can complicate movement and search operations. The two SPOs’ disappearance also prompted a joint search involving the police, Army and CRPF.
Names Differed Initially
There was some confusion over the personnel’s identities in the first reports. An initial report on Wednesday identified the two as Rishipal and Bobby Chand, but subsequent PTI-based reports published after their bodies were recovered identified them as Babi Chand and Rashpal Kumar. Since the later identification is consistent across multiple reports, this version uses Babi Chand and Rashpal Kumar and avoids relying on the differing age figures reported by various outlets.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
The deaths of two personnel while serving in a remote and challenging region are a tragic reminder of the human cost of violence and insecurity. The immediate priority should be a thorough and impartial investigation that establishes what happened, while ensuring their families receive timely information and support.
At the same time, unverified claims about militant involvement should be avoided until investigators establish the facts. Communities living in conflict-affected regions deserve safety, dignity and the freedom to live without fear. How can authorities and communities work together to prevent such violence while building greater trust and lasting peace?
