Civilian, policeman killed in separate attacks in Kashmir
SRINAGAR: A civilian and a police officer were killed in two separate targeted terror attacks in the Kashmir valley on Wednesday evening, police said.
These were the latest in a spate of attacks on civilians and minorities over the past three months by small terror modules that have brought back memories of targeted killings that were reported in Kashmir at the start of militancy in the early 1990s.
The civilian, Rouf Ahmad, 45, was shot at by unidentified gunmen in the Eidgah area of Srinagar. He was rushed to hospital, where he succumbed to injuries. He worked as a property dealer.
“Terrorists fired upon a civilian Rouf Ahmad at Merjanpora, Eidgah PS Safakadal Srinagar. The injured was shifted to SMHS hospital where he was declared dead. Case registered, investigation going on,” a J&K police spokesman said in an official release. The incident took place at 5:25pm, police said.
In another attack, later in the evening, unidentified gunmen fired at a police officer near the Bijbehara police station in Anantnag.
The officer, Assistant sub-inspector (ASI), Mohammad Ashraf, 51, also succumbed to his injuries in hospital.
The police spokesman quoted earlier said ASI Ashraf, who lived in Awantipora, was attacked at about 6.10pm.
“In this terror crime incident, he received gunshot injuries and was immediately shifted to hospital, however he succumbed to his injuries,” he said.
Police have registered cases in both incidents. “The respective areas have been cordoned and search in these areas is going on,” the spokesman said, adding that the circumstances leading to the terror crimes were being investigated.
The attacks led to widespread condemnation from political leaders across the political spectrum.
“I unreservedly condemn these two attacks & send my condolences to the families of those who lost their lives today,” tweeted National Conference vice president and former chief minister Omar Abdullah.
“We strongly condemn... attack on ASI Ashraf and Rouf
Ahmed... Heartfelt condolences & sympathies with their families, the Sajjad Lone-led People’s Conference said in a statement.
Extending condolences to the families of the deceased, People’s Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti said “There is no end in sight to the cycle of bloodshed and violence in Kashmir.”
The Bharatiya Janata Party’s J&K spokesman Altaf Thakur termed the attacks as “barbaric”, and expressed solidarity with the bereaved families.
Kashmir lost its special status and statehood in a controversial central government decision on August 5, 2019.
Resentment about the move continues to simmer in the Valley but the government has repeatedly said that terror attacks have deceased since the voiding of Article 370.
On Wednesday, the government told the Rajya Sabha that the number of terrorist incidents decreased from 417 in 2018 to 203 (up to November 30) in 2021.
At least 11 people, many of them non-local residents and from Hindu and Sikh communities, were killed in the region since October, triggering alarm among residents and authorities.