Pulwama Gunfight: Slain militants identified

Srinagar

Jammu and Kashmir Police on Monday said the three militants slain in a gunfight with the government forces in Pinglana area of south Kashmir’s Pulwama district were affiliated with Jaish-e-Muhammad.

A police spokesman said that that one more militant has been killed in the encounter with security forces.

“Also one of our colleagues identified as Head Constable Abdul Rashid Kalas sustained gunshot injuries during the encounter. He was evacuated to hospital for medical attention where he succumbed,” said the spokesman.

“One of the three slain militants has been identified as Hilal resident of Pinglena Pulwama and from the incriminating material recovered from the site of the encounter the other two militants have been identified as non-locals,” he said.

“According to the police records, all the three slain militants were affiliated with proscribed militant outfit JeM and were wanted by the law for their complicity in a series of terror crimes including an attack on security establishments and civilian atrocities,” he said.

“One of the foreign militants identified as Kamran had taken over as operational commander of JeM after Mufti Waqas who was killed in an encounter in February last year,” he added.

“As per police records, Kamran remained active in District Pulwama and Awantipora since 2017 and had a long history of terror crime records. He was responsible for the recruitment of people to the militant fold and several criminal cases were registered against him,” said the spokesman.

“Kamran while operating in the southern belts extensively relied on the old JeM network of militant Noor Trali and Mufti Waqas. His role in the recent attack on CRPF at Lethpora is being probed as well,” he said.

The spokesman said similarly Hilal was involved in several terror-related crimes and several crime cases were registered against him.

“Arms & ammunition including rifles were recovered from the site of encounter. All these materials have been taken in the case records for further investigation and to probe their complicity in other cases,” he said.

“Citizens are once again requested not to venture inside the encounter zone since such an area can prove dangerous due to stray explosive materials. People are requested to cooperate with police till the area is completely sanitized and cleared of all the explosives materials if any,” said police spokesman in a statement.

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