Two labourers killed in Shopian grenade blast
SRINAGAR: Two migrant labourers from Uttar Pradesh were killed in Jammu and Kashmir’s Shopian district after terrorists hurled a grenade at them on Tuesday, triggering protests in the Union territory against a spike in such incidents, police said.
Two terrorists who were said to be in touch with Pakistanbased Lashkar-e-taiba (LET) commanders Danish Bhat and Abid were later arrested. Efforts are underway to nab the commanders, police added.
The deceased were identified as Manish Kumar (34) and Ram Sagar (55), residents of Danna Purwa village in Uttar Pradesh’s Kannauj district. The attack, the second in two days, took place on Tuesday when the terrorists lobbed a grenade at a tin shed where the deceased were living, in Harmain village, Kashmir additional director general of police (ADGP) Vijay Kumar said.
“...(the) two labourers were injured and later succumbed to injuries at a hospital,” he said.
Kumar, who visited the attack site, said two terrorists were arrested and efforts are on to nab their commanders. “We will neutralise both of them,” he said.
The Resistance Force, an outfit affiliated with LET, claimed responsibility for the attack, according to a statement it released later in the day.
At least 23 targeted attacks on civilians and migrants took place and 17 people were killed in such attacks across Kashmir this year.
On Saturday, a 56-year-old Kashmiri Pandit was shot dead by terrorists near his residence in Shopian district, triggering widespread protests on Monday.
Two more Kashmiri Pandits have been killed this year.
On September 2, Muneer ul Islam, a migrant worker from West Bengal, was shot at by terrorists in Pulwama. On August 11, another migrant from Bihar, Mohammad Amrez, was shot dead in Bandipora district.
Several parties and organisations held protests in Jammu on Tuesday. Activists of Shiv Sena, Rashtriya Bajrang Dal and Shiv Sena Dogra Front held demonstrations at Bari Brahmana, Bus Stand and Rani Park in Jammu and its outskirts, respectively.
“Kashmiri Hindus, migrant labourers, security personnel and common citizens are constantly being targeted by terrorists. This is the second incident of targeted killing in the last 72 hours. The BJP government should bring its act together before it’s too late,” Shiv Sena J&K chief Manish Sahni said.
Hitting back, J&K BJP president Ravinder Raina said: “During peak terrorism in 1990, when there was death and destruction everywhere, the opposition leaders fled the country. The situation is not the same today. A few terrorists are left and they will soon be eliminated.”