Senior J-K official killed in Pakistani shelling in Rajouri as conflict escalates

New Delhi: A Jammu and Kashmir official was killed and two of his colleagues critically injured when a Pakistani artillery shell hit their residential quarters in Rajouri on Saturday morning as the military conflict between India and Pakistan took a sharp upturn.

After a night of bristling tension, India woke up to reports of sounds of explosions coming in from Srinagar in Kashmir Valley and several places in Punjab, and Pakistan claiming Indian missiles and drones had targeted three of its airbases.

Pakistan military spokesperson Lt Gen Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry told a hurriedly called press conference in Islamabad around 4 am that Nur Khan (Chaklala, Rawalpindi), Murid (Chakwal) and Rafiqui (Shorkot in Jhang district) airbases of Pakistan Air Force were targeted. "But all assets of the Air Force remain safe," he claimed.

Pakistan had launched a fresh wave of drone attacks targeting 26 locations in India -- from Jammu and Kashmir to Gujarat -- for the second night on Friday.

In Jammu region’s Rajouri district, a Pakistani shell landed at the staff residential quarters.

Additional Deputy Commissioner, Rajouri, Raj Kumar Thapa and his two staff members were seriously injured and were rushed to the Government Medical College. While Thapa could not survive, the condition of the other two is stated to be critical, officials said.

"Devastating news from Rajouri. We have lost a dedicated officer of the J&K Administration Services. Just yesterday he was accompanying the Deputy CM around the district & attended the online meeting I chaired,” Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said in a post on X.

Devastating news from Rajouri. We have lost a dedicated officer of the J&K Administration Services. Just yesterday he was accompanying the Deputy CM around the district & attended the online meeting I chaired. Today the residence of the officer was hit by Pak shelling as they…

— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) May 10, 2025

"Today the residence of the officer was hit by Pak shelling as they targeted Rajouri town killing our Additional District Development Commissioner Sh Raj Kumar Thappa. I’ve no words to express my shock & sadness at this terrible loss of life. May his soul rest in peace," the chief minister added.

There were also reports of houses being damaged in Jammu.

In Srinagar city, multiple blasts were heard early morning, hours after the Indian military thwarted drone attacks by Pakistan at several places late Friday night.

According to officials, the blasts were heard near vital installations, including the airport. As soon as the blasts were heard, sirens went off.

Power was snapped in the city and most other parts of the valley, the officials said.

In Punjab’s Jalandhar district, villagers in Kanganiwal said an unidentified projectile landed near their homes in the early hours of Saturday. They said a migrant labourer was injured in his hand while there was some damage to a few houses in the area.

"The water tank of our house was damaged. Window and door glasses were shattered. After the blast, there was smoke all around," said Satinder Kumar.

A few hours later, around 5 am, explosion like sounds were heard in the state’s Pathankot district. However, there was no official confirmation.

There were similar reports from Amritsar and Goindwal Sahib in Tarn Taran as well as Sirsa in Haryana. Three members of a family were also injured in a village in Ferozepur in the state when a crashing projectile from a Pakistani drone destroyed by the air defense system landed at a house in Village Khai Pheme Ke.

In Pakistan, military spokesperson Chaudhry said India has fired air-to-surface missiles with its jets. Several missiles were intercepted by Pakistan's air defence system. He said this is a "sinister act of India pushing the region into lethal war and Pakistan will respond to this aggression. India should wait for our response".

Chaudhry did not take any questions and ended the presser abruptly. Minutes later, state-run PTV cited security officials to say that Pakistan has launched a counter attack.

The Pakistan Airport Authority (PAA) issued a notification stating that Pakistan's airspace has been closed from 3.15 am to 12 noon for all kinds of air traffic.

In India, 32 airports across northern and western parts of the country, including Srinagar, Bhuj and Amritsar, have been closed for civilian flight operations till May 15.

The military conflict between India and Pakistan has continued unabated since India's May 7 strikes on terror camps and Pakistan's subsequent shelling of border areas.

India’s strikes, codenamed Operation Sindoor, were in retaliation for the terror attack in Kashmir’s Pahalgam town in which 26 people, all tourists except for a local ‘ponywallah’ were killed.