Parampore attack video captures dramatic moments

In a dramatic video of the terror attack on Saturday in which eight soldiers were killed and nearly two dozen injured in Jammu and Kashmir's Pampore district, terrorists could be heard firing indiscriminately at a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) bus in an amateur video.

Non-stop gunshots in the video, said to have been filmed by a local, mark the moment the terrorists started firing at the bus full of CRPF personnel on the Srinagar-Jammu highway.

The bus with 40 soldiers on board was returning to Srinagar after a firing exercise when it was ambushed by at least two terrorists armed with hand grenades and AK 47 guns.

As many as 322 soldiers were injured in the attack, which has been claimed by the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar e Taiba (LeT).

Home Minister Rajnath Singh said in a melodramatic statement on Sunday, "We will make sure not to fire the first bullet, but even if one bullet is fired from their (Pakistan's) side, we shouldn't even think about keeping a count on the bullets that we fire."

Questions are being raised about whether lapses on part of the forces led to needless damage in the attack, the worst in three years. The bus was travelling without escorts who could have retaliated immediately to the ambush. Also, the team known as the "road opening party", which sanitises important highways in the state, failed to detect the attackers waiting in a car.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has said an inquiry will determine whether standard operating procedure was violated.

Parrikar said the Pampore attack was a mark of "frustration" and an attempt by terrorists from across the border to stay in the news.

"Over the last one month, we had shot down 25 to 30 terrorists who had infiltrated to India from Pakistan. Chances are slipping away from the hands of the terrorists," the defence minister said.