Abid Bashir
Srinagar (NVI): Srinagar is not “militancy free” as the terrorists keep on coming to the district for various purposes which include receiving medical treatment, meeting each other and to receive funds, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kashmir, Vijay Kumar said today.
“Srinagar district is a central district and can never be militancy free. Militants keep on coming to the city for many purposes—medical treatment, meeting with each other, and sometimes to receive funds,” the IGP told reporters on the sidelines of a wreath-laying ceremony of a CRPF jawan who was killed in late last night encounter at Malbagh on Srinagar outskirts.
IGP Kashmir along with officers/jawans of #Police & #SecurityForces paid #floral #tributes to brave heart of CRPF who attained #martyrdom last night while fighting #terrorists at #MallaBagh area of Srinagar. May his soul #RestInPeace. @JmuKmrPolice pic.twitter.com/K0NmwBEni1
— Kashmir Zone Police (@KashmirPolice) July 3, 2020
He was replying to a query that there have been three encounters in Srinagar including the one yesterday at Malbagh, in the past less than a month. The IGP said that if there is no encounter in any district, that doesn’t mean the area or the district is militancy free.
“Let me clarify, there have been no militant attacks in Srinagar. All three incidents were the outcome of proactive action of Police and the CRPF where leads were developed and militants hiding in the city were tracked down and killed. Yesterday also, a lead was developed and when the suspected spot was zeroed in, the militants fired indiscriminately in which one CRPF man was hit who later succumbed,” the IGP said. The slain CRPF soldier has been identified as Kuldeep Oraon of the 118th battalion.
The IGP Kashmir said that in Malbagh encounter, Police and CRPF killed one ISJK commander for Anantnag district- Zahid Das, who along with four other militants were involved in a series of attacks on security forces including the one at Bijbehera recently in which a minor boy was killed. “He was a big criminal for us and his killing is a major success for police and the CRPF,” he said. “The slain militant was involved in the killing of police and CRPF men in South Kashmir and also in various weapon snatching cases.”
“Zahid’s two other associates were recently killed in Bijbehara and two more militants of his group are on the run and they will be killed soon,” the IGP said.
Asked about the 12 top commanders of Hizbul Mujahideen, Jaish-e-Muhammad and Lashkar-e-Toiba, who are on police radar, he said, “We have already announced their names and they are being tracked down”, adding that names of all the 12 have been released to the media recently.
-ARK
