Two CRPF personnel injured as gunmen fire on Kulgam checkpoint

SRINAGAR – Two Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were injured on Wednesday afternoon when gunmen on a motorcycle opened fire on a security checkpoint at Akhran, near Mir Bazar in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kulgam district, the paramilitary force said.

The attackers escaped after the shooting. Security forces have cordoned off the area and launched a search operation to find them.

What the CRPF said about the Kulgam attack

In a statement, the CRPF said “unidentified motorcycle-borne assailants” fired at personnel deployed at a naka, or checkpoint, in Kulgam district. The firing took place at about 2.15 pm, after which the assailants fled the spot, the force said.

The two injured personnel were taken to a hospital in neighbouring Anantnag district for treatment, according to the statement, which was reported by ANI and Rising Kashmir. Officials have described the incident as a terror attack.

Shortly after the shooting, a senior police officer told Greater Kashmir that firing on a CRPF party had been reported in the Akhran area and that the facts were still being ascertained.

Search operation under way in south Kashmir

A cordon and search operation was launched around Akhran soon after the attack. Greater Kashmir, citing officials, described it as a “massive hunt” for the attackers.

Security was also tightened in the surrounding area, with vehicles being checked at checkpoints, Dainik Jagran English reported.

What is still not known

Officials have not released the names of the injured personnel or given details of their condition. The hospital in Anantnag where they are being treated has not been named.

No group has claimed responsibility, and officials have not identified the attackers or said how many were involved. Some early reports, including one carried by Gulf News, put the number of injured at three. The CRPF’s own statement refers to two injured personnel.

Recent security incidents in Kulgam

Kulgam, about 70 km south of Srinagar, has seen repeated counter-insurgency operations. In August 2025, two Army soldiers were killed during Operation Akhal, a gunfight in a Kulgam forest area that lasted more than a week.

On November 8, police said two suspected associates of militants were arrested at a joint checkpoint in the district, with a pistol, ammunition and hand grenades recovered, Dainik Jagran English reported. Officials have not said whether that case is linked to Wednesday’s attack.

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