Head Constable kills four CISF colleagues in Kathua fratricide

The scene unfolds at Mashka near the Sewa II project where a verbal clash spirals into gunfire, leaving four CISF members dead. Assistant Commandant Ankit Kumar Pandey and Sub-Inspector Lakshman Singh die alongside Constables Rafiq Ahmed and Sandeep Kumar after a Head Constable fires from his service rifle during a duty change, according to CISF and police updates⁸.

The shooter, identified as Head Constable Abhidesh Kumar, is arrested and the weapon seized as investigators begin to piece together what triggered the altercation^10,18. The victims and the accused were part of the same security force tasked with guarding the hydroelectric site near Basohli, a border district adjacent to Himachal Pradesh, and the incident has sparked a police inquiry and an internal CISF review^6,38.

The broader impact includes a security force shock, heightened scrutiny of internal discipline, and a call for immediate accountability within the unit as the police push toward understanding the exact sequence and motive behind the fratricide^9,37. In the immediate aftermath, officials from CISF and local police cordoned off the site area, secured the duty shift handover zone, and began collecting forensic particulars while coordinating with supervisory officers to assess how the altercation escalated to gunfire during a routine change of watch.

Investigators are examining whether prior tensions, line-of-duty stress, or nearby operational pressures contributed to the tragic turn of events, with families and fellow guards in Basohli already expressing distress and demanding clear explanations and swift disciplinary actions pending the ongoing inquiry^8,10,18,38. The case underscores the fragile sense of security around critical infrastructure and has prompted intensified internal audits, reviews of incident-response protocols, and a renewed emphasis on command accountability within CISF, as authorities strive to establish the precise motive and chronology behind the fratricide while ensuring transparency for the communities affected^9,37.