J&K: Civilian Killed, Non-local Injured in two Separate Attacks

Srinagar: A civilian was killed and a non-local street vendor injured in two separate attacks by suspected militants in Kashmir’s Budgam and Pulwama on Monday night as targeted assassinations continue to raise concerns in the region.

Armed assailants fired indiscriminately and killed Tajamul Mohiuddin a resident of Gotpora village in Budgam, Central Kashmir, at his home in the evening hours on Monday.

“He had sustained critical gunshot injuries and was immediately shifted to a nearby hospital for treatment. However, doctors declared him dead on arrival,” the police said.

Tajamul’s killing is the second such incident in Budgam area this month. Earlier, suspected militants abducted and killed Sameer Ahmad Malla on March 7. They had abducted him from his village in Khag area. Sameer, who left behind a family including a new born, was a soldier in the Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry (JAKLI) and his body was retrieved three days later.

In South Kashmir’s Pulwama, at about 7:45 pm on Monday, suspected militants fired upon a street vendor, who the police later identified as Bisujeet Kumar, a resident of Bihar. The police said Kumar had received gunshot injuries and was immediately shifted to Srinagar’s SMHS Hospital in a Critical Care ambulance where he is being treated.

Soon after the incidents were reported in the two areas, senior officers of the police and reinforcement reached the spots where the attacks had been carried out.

The police have registered cases in both the incidents and launched an investigation. “The officers continue to work to establish the full circumstances leading to these terror crimes,” the police added. The security forces have cordoned off these areas and a search operation has been launched to track the attackers.

The attack on Kumar is also the second one that has taken place against a non-local in the region within a matter of days. Earlier, a resident of Uttar Pradesh was injured after being shot by suspected militants in Arihal area of Pulwama on March 19. His condition, however, is said to be stable; he is being treated at the SMHS Hospital, according to the Jammu and Kashmir police.

The incidents of attack on civilian targets have surged in Kashmir since March beginning with at least six dead and several others injured. The targeted attacks on PRIs – Panch and Sarpanches – and security personnel are seen as part of the violent trend carried out by militants in October last year, which triggered fresh security concerns.

There has been no let up in counter-insurgency operations even as 39 militants have been killed in the region in the first three month of this year while 24 militants or their associates have been arrested. The police and security forces have also arrested around 150 others who they refer to as Over Ground Workers (OGW) of the militant network.