Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Feb 16: Militants today looted Rs 3.04 lakhs from the Jammu and Kashmir Bank in Shopian area of South Kashmir after firing gun shots inside the Bank.
Militants this morning at around 11 am fired gunshots and entered into J&K Bank’s Turkawangam Branch in Shopian district of South Kashmir and decamped with Rs 3.04 lakh.
Police said four militants were involved in the robbery. “They opened fire outside the J&K Bank in Turkawangam village before forcing their entry inside the bank. At least three lakh rupees were looted by them,” the official said.
They said that two out of four militants involved in the bank robbery have been identified as Tariq Ahmad Bhat of Barburgh,Shopian and Zeenat-ul-Islam of Sugan, Zainapora Shopian. Tariq was identified by the INSAS he was carrying. Tariq was kept as guard outside while the other three went inside.
There has been steep rise in bank robberies during the last four months. However, it is the first incident of this year.
On November 21, 2016, militants robbed a bank in Charar-e-Sharief area of Central Kashmir’s Budgam district, decamping with nearly Rs 13 lakh cash.
On Dec 15, 2016, militants looted about Rs 10 lakhs from a bank in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district. Police had said that a group of four gunmen barged into the Jammu and Kashmir Bank branch at Ratnipora in Pulwama district and decamped with Rs 9.84 lakh.
On December 8, 2016, unidentified gunmen had looted Rs 13.38 lakhs from Jammu and Kashmir Bank branch at Arihal in Pulwama district.
Police said that the Lashkar-e-Toiba militants are involved in earlier bank robberies.
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