Fayaz Bukhari
Srinagar, June 24: A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) officer was killed as militants attacked their convoy on Srinagar-Jammu highway near Pantha Chowk in outskirt’s of Srinagar this evening.
Militants attacked a vehicle (bearing registration number Eicher JK01P-2127) part of the convoy of 29 battalion of CRPF near Delhi Public School (DPS) at Pantha Chowk at around 6 p.m, injuring an Sub Inspector identified as Sahab Shukla and a Driver (Constable belt no. 75025548) Nisar Ahmad.
The injured were shifted to nearby Army’s 92 Base Hospital at Badamibagh where the SI succumbed to his injuries and the condition of the driver is stated to be critical.
Soon after the attack, Army, Special Operations Group (SOG) of Jammu and Kashmir Police and CRPF cordoned off the entire area and launched a manhunt to nab the assailants. However, no one was arrested. Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) claimed responsibility for the attack.
Senior Super-intendent of Police (SSP) Srinagar, Imtiaz Ismail Parray, said that it is not yet known how many militants were there but two militants fired at the CRPF vehicle on National Highway and they fled after carrying out the attack. He said that security forces have launched an operation and it is going on.
And a day after the lynching of a DySP, police today formed a Special Investigating Team (SIT) to probe the incident even as three more persons have been arrested by police taking the number of persons arrested to four.
Deputy Inspector General (DIG), Ghulam Hassan Bhat has been directed to form a SIT which will probe and nab all the culprits who are involved in the lynching of the police officer. Sources said that the SIT will be headed by SP North Sajad Shah who today assumed the charge after SP North Sajjad Bhat was attached to the Police Headquarters (PHQ).
Police arrested three more persons taking the number to five and more arrests are likely. Police said that they have identified 12 persons in connection with the case and five of them have been arrested.
DySP Mohammad Ayub Pandith of Nowpora, Khanyar in Srinagar was lynched to death by a furious mob in Old City’s Jamia Masjid area in Nowhatta on Thursday while he was on duty.
And family and relatives of Danish Mir, who was arrested in connection with DySP’s lynching today protested and demanded his immediate release. The family said that Danish Mir, was hit by bullet in his leg before the police officer was lynched.
His mother said that Danish was at Jamia Masjid to offer prayers and was not part of the mob who killed the DySP and he was almost dead when Pandith was lynched.
“Police arrived at the hospital and said that they will take Danish under preventive custody but after we tried to enquire the health condition of our beloved son, we were not allowed to meet him and were asked to leave,” Danish’s mother said.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti has paid rich tributes to the Sub Inspector of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) who was killed today at Pantha Chowk, Srinagar in a militant attack.
The Chief Minister has conveyed her sympathies to the bereaved family of the said officer. She has also wished speedy recovery to the jawans injured in the incident.
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