Army looking into reports of snipers entering Kashmir

NEW DELHI: Army Chief General Bipin Rawat said that the Army was looking into reports that snipers had entered the Kashmir Valley to cause violence against security forces.

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of an event here, General Rawat said it would be premature to say that snipers had iniltrated because security forces were yet to recover any weapon or ammunition that indicated their presence.

A CISF oficial was killed on the outskirts of Srinagar early on Saturday morning, the third death in a suspected sniper attack by militants over the past week.

General Rawat said that the Army was studying whether the attacks were carried out “by snipers or not.”

A media report had said that Kashmir’s Inspector General of Police SP Pani, in a letter to senior police oficials, had expressed concern over militants resorting to sniper attacks to target the forces and suggested measures such as raising the height of walls around camps.

Anationalinvestigationagency(nia) team on Tuesday raided the residence of a businessman here.

Anniaoficialinnewdelhiconirmed that the raid was being conducted at Fayaz Ahmad Mir’s residence in the city’s Lal Bazar area.

Theteamwasaccompaniedbyjammu and Kashmir Police personnel. No other details of the raid were immediately available. The agency has been carrying out raids at the ofices and residences of separatists and businessmen in connection with the hawala scam that the NIA has been investigating.

Two months ago, the NIA raid the residence of another businessman in Srinagar’s Nowhatta area.

Three militants were arrested on Monday after a brief shootout with security forces on the outskirts of Srinagar city, police said.