Srinagar : Two Jaish-e-Mohammad militants were killed in a gunfight in Baramulla district of north Kashmir on Friday.
Additional Director General of Police Vijay Kumar identified the duo as Yawar Shafi Bhat of Kalampora Pulwama and Aamir Hussain Bhat of Veshro Shopian. The top cop of Kashmir told GNS that both of them had joined militant ranks recently.
Earlier SSP Baramulla Rayees Mohammad Bhat (IPS) said that the militants had come to disrupt the ongoing Army’s Agniveer rally in North Kashmir’s Baramulla district.
“We received an input this morning about the presence of some militants in Yedipora village and subsequently a joint team of Police and Army launched a cordon and search operation in the area.”
During searches, he said, the hiding militants from a residential house fired upon the search party, which was retaliated, triggering off the encounter.
After a firefight for some time, he said, the militants were killed. He said that from their possession AKS74U rifle with three magazines and a pistol with a magazine were recovered.
The police officer claimed that intelligence input suggested that these two militants were given task to attack the ongoing army (Agniveer) recruitment rally in Baramulla.
“Their mission was to disturbing the rally. However we have been successful in repulsing their plan to attack the rally by killing both the militants”, he said according to GNS.
“We appeal to the people not to go near the encounter site until the site is completely sanitized from any kind of explosions. And I also appeal to youth not to join the path of violence,” he added.
Meanwhile, Army and police launched a search operation along Naushera Nard till the Line of Control in Gurez Sector of Bandipora and after three days of search, a hideout was found along the Nala. “On digging, a huge weapon cache of 07 AK Rifles, 02 Chinese Pistols, 13 Chinese Grenades, 21 AK magazines, 04 pistol magazines, 1190 AK ammunition and 132 Pistol ammunition were recovered,” army said in a statement.
Separately, militants fled after a gunfight in Chitragam area of South Kashmir’s Shopian district, officials said.
A top Police officer told GNS that there was a lull after a brief exchange of fire between militants and security forces in wee hours. later the operation was called off, he added. (GNS)