Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Oct 27:
A Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) officer was killed in a militant attack in Budgam district last night.
Police said that in the intervening night, a standoff fire by militants took place at the Grid Station Wagoora in Budgam district in which one Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) of CISF was injured. Police said that the attack was, however, successfully repulsed by the alert sentry at the spot.
Massive search operation was immediately launched in the area but the militants had fled under the cover of darkness.
The injured ASI Rajendra Prasad was evacuated to the hospital for medical attention but succumbed at the hospital. Jaish-e-Mohammad claimed responsibility for the attack.
Additional Director General of Police, Muneer Khan, while giving details of the incident said that militants attacked the camp at around 1 a.m. in which an ASI of CISF was critically injured.
When asked about Army chief Bipin Rawat terming of the stone pelters as OGWs of the militants after the killing of a soldier in Anantnag, Khan said: “Army chief is very senior to me. I don’t have mandate of commenting what he said as I am very junior to him.”
Khan said that the militants are frustrated with the recent successful operations against them. “This happened on the outskirts of Srinagar city and it is bordering Pulwama and Srinagar. So, there have been very successful operations in which in last two days eight militants were eliminated of different outfits and that too without any collateral damage. That means the flow of information is there, operations are going on good and of course it is all now frustration on the side of militants”, he said.
The ADGP said that flow of information is very good and security forces operations against militants would continue. “The success of anti-militancy operations depends on the flow of information. Operations are going on good, which means the flow of information is very good and we intend to keep on doing such operations”, he said.
Khan said that the Panchayat elections will be more challenging because the spread is too much than the ULB elections but “we are prepared for that”.
Militants today abducted the son of the house owner in which three militants and seven civilians were killed on Sunday. Sheeraz Ahmad Bhat, the son of the house owner was abducted by a group of a militants who came in a car. The family members tried to save his from abduction but the militants fried in air to scare them away.
And a senior security force official today identified the two killed militants in yesterday’s gunfight at Pazalpora, Sopore as foreigners and including top LeT commander.
They were identified as Abu Maaz and his close associate Ali Bhai alias Zubair of Lashkar-e-Toiba.
Abu Maaz as per Police was involved in a number of attacks in Sopore including in the killing of Major Satish Diya of Army, a shopkeeper Tawseef Ahmad Ganie as well as a number of SPOs.
Maaz was the top commander of the outfit and was active for at least three years in Sopore while Ali Bhai had infiltrated six months ago. Police said that he was instrumental in recruiting youth into militancy. The slain militant commander was carrying a reward of Rs 12.5 lakh on his head.
And at least 30 people were injured today in protests during two separate cordon and search operations (CASOs) in the twin districts of Kulgam and Shopian in south Kashmir.
A joint operation was launched by Army, Police and CRPF this afternoon at DK Pora village in Shopian after inputs about the presence of militants in the village. When the joint team started door to door searches, people protested against the operation. They hurled stones at the security forces who fired tear gas and pellets to disperse them. The clashes continued for several hours in which 10 persons were injured. A woman identified as Sundri Begum was hit by pellets in the left eye. She was rushed to the hospital for treatment.
Protests also broke out in Ghat Khudwani area of Kulgam when security forces launched an operation against militants. In the clashes that continued till evening, at least 20 people were injured. Three among the injured were hit by pellets and one had bullet injury.
Unknown persons this evening set ablaze Panchayat Ghar in North Kashmir’s Sopore village. The building at Nowpora village of Sopore town was set afire this evening. This is the first such incident in Sopore area of North Kashmir.
And Kashmir Valley today observed a shutdown against the landing of troops in Kashmir on this day in 1947.
Shops and other commercial establishments, schools and colleges remained closed across Kashmir Valley including commercial hub of Lal Chowk in Srinagar while attendance of employees in Government offices was reported to be thin.
Public transport remained off the roads. However, skeletal private vehicles were seen plying some parts of Valley.
Paramilitary security forces and police were deployed in strength at sensitive places. Railway authorities had also suspended train services across Kashmir as a precautionary measure in view of shutdown called by separatist leaders Syed Ali Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik.
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