Fayaz Bukhari
Srinagar, May 27: Militants this evening shot at and injured critically a landlord in whose premises a cell phone tower was installed in Pattan area of North Kashmir’s Baramulla district.
Sources said that at least three militants barged into the house of one Imtiaz Ahmad Sofi son of Ali Mohammad Sofi resident of Arm Mohalla Pattan in district Baramulla, landlord for a cellular tower, and fired at him indiscriminately. He was critically injured and removed to Bone and Joints Hospital in Srinagar for treatment.
This was the second attack in last 24 hours and fourth in past five days where Telecoms have been attacked. The attacks took place after militant posters appeared in Sopore and Baramulla asking the telecoms to shutdown.
Last night militants barged into the house of Ghulam Hassan Dar, 60, son of Abdul Khaliq Dar and shot him in his chest. Dar, who was an ex-militant with Al-Jihad outfit, died on the spot.
Dar’s son Tanveer Ahmad who is a Congress Sarpanch said that gunmen had threatened them 4-5 days ago and told them to shutdown the operations of the telecommunication tower installed in the compound of their house. “We shutdown the tower but a telecom company pressured us by saying that when no tower is shut in the area, how can you do so? We restarted the operations of the tower,” he said.
Dar said: “Yesterday night, I along with my three brothers were watching a cricket match. My father was in another room. In the meanwhile, three gunmen barged into our house and they told my father why didn’t he shut down the tower and shot him.”
The multiple attacks on Telecoms has led to shutdown of the services in various parts of North Kashmir. Majority of the towers have been shut down by the landlords due to fear psychosis.
Cellular services in North Kashmir’s Sopore area were adversely affected today. Reports said that three private telecommunication companies completely suspended their operation and only Airtel and state-run BSNL are functioning.
Reports said that two telecom vendors were also threatened in Bandipora today. They were asked by the unidentified persons to shutdown their telecom business or face consequences.
The telecom vendors in Sopore and other areas have shutdown their business due to fear psychosis. The customers faced problem of re-charging and some of them got it done from Srinagar and other places.
The attacks continued even after United Jihad Council – an amalgam of militant outfits operating in Kashmir -condemned the attacks and said that militants have not done it.
Police have detained few people to investigate the attack on telecoms but there is no breakthrough yet.
Police, Army and CRPF have intensified their patrol in various parts of North Kashmir’s Sopore and other areas to give sense of security to telecom operators.
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