Suspected militants shot dead a senior National Conference (NC) worker in broad daylight here on Friday afternoon. The ruling NC raised a finger of suspicion at the opposition parties, claiming that "their role cannot be ruled out" in the crime.
Masked gunmen accosted victim Abdul Rehman Ganai in uptown Srinagar's Natipora area at about 1:35pm and fired at him from a close range while he was on way to a mosque for Friday prayers, police said. The suspected militants fled the spot, leaving Ganai in a pool of blood.
"Unknown militants fired at Ganai this afternoon in Natipora area. He was immediately shifted to the Bone and Joints Hospital in Srinagar where he breathed his last," said the police statement.
Hospital sources said Ganai, who was in his sixties, died of two bullets injuries. Early police investigations suggested that a pistol was used in the crime.
The victim was NC block president in charge of Batamaloo constituency of state home minister Nasir Aslam Wani. Ganai, a resident of Natipora, is survived by four daughters and two sons.
Condemning the attack, NC spokesman Tanvir Sadiq said, "Ganai was a noble and pious soul. We suspect the hand of opposition parties in the killing. Newspapers in Srinagar had carried a statement of an opposition party (Peoples Democratic Party) on Friday threatening to wipe out the NC from the city. We suspect the agencies working under the umbrella of our opposition party could be behind the act. It cannot be rule out."
{{/usCountry}}Condemning the attack, NC spokesman Tanvir Sadiq said, "Ganai was a noble and pious soul. We suspect the hand of opposition parties in the killing. Newspapers in Srinagar had carried a statement of an opposition party (Peoples Democratic Party) on Friday threatening to wipe out the NC from the city. We suspect the agencies working under the umbrella of our opposition party could be behind the act. It cannot be rule out."
{{/usCountry}}Sadiq was quick to add: "Why would militants kill someone like this? It's evident who the beneficiary of the killing is."
While chief minister Omar Abdullah condemned the attack, the party sought a high-level probe into the incident.
The chief minister expressed surprise at the silence of the netizens over the incident. "I suppose that because Ganai was an NC activist, his killing today is not worthy of the outrage we often see here in Twitteristan," Omar wrote on the micro-blogging site Twitter.
The attack has come barely three weeks after militants attacked a CRPF patrol in old city, injuring at least seven personnel.