The terror attack began at around 5:00am local time when the gunmen first opened fire at a bus near the Punjab-Jammu Kashmir border. The gang composed of armed men wearing camouflage uniforms then hijacked a car to get to the police station.
According to Times of India, six civilians were killed in the attacks, while another four people were injured. According to an Indian Intelligence Bureau source, all of the policemen inside the building could have been killed, IBN reports.
Police brought in reinforcements and cordoned off the area after the attackers managed to take over the police station. Army commandos and a Quick Response Team (QRT) have also been called in.
The army has taken over the command of the operation to capture the militants as they remain holed up in police quarters, engaging in a firefight with authorities.
According to India’s ANI news agency, at least one militant was killed in the ongoing standoff.
“We were hit by a burst of gunfire suddenly. I was hit on the shoulder. They are firing indiscriminately,” a Punjab police official, who was injured in the attack, told media as he was being taken to hospital.
Schools and colleges in the area have been closed until the situation in Gurdaspur is resolved.
As the attack was unfolding, authorities found five explosive devices wired to a railway track some five km from Dinanagar. Train traffic on the Amritsar-Pathankot section of the track was halted. According to The Hindu, a train on the way to a potentially imminent accident managed to stop just 200 meters before reaching the explosions which would have resulted in even more civilian casualties.
Gunmen storm police station in India"s Punjab - VIDEO
27 July 2015
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Gunmen have stormed a police station in the northern Indian state of Punjab, reportedly killing everyone inside. Prior to the assault the terrorists opened fire at a bus station. Up to six civilians are believed to have been killed in the ongoing terror attack.
