Four soldiers killed at Bathinda military station, ‘fratricide’ suspected

New Delhi, Apr 12 : Four soldiers were shot dead early Wednesday morning in a firing incident at the Bathinda Military Station in Punjab in what is suspected to be a case of fratricide. Confirming the incident, the South Western Command of the Army said in a statement that the firing incident happened at around 0435 in the morning. It also said that four fatal casualties had been reported and further details were being ascertained. It added that the Quick Reaction Teams were activated and the area was cordoned off and sealed. Search operation was on at the time of filing this report. Meanwhile, sources in the defence and security establishment said to ThePrint that there were two gunmen and they had been isolated in one of the mess areas within the military station. They added that this is likely to be a case of fratricide. They added that both the individuals have INSAS (Indian Small Arms System) rifles with them with a magazine of 28 rounds that was reported missing two days back.