Policeman killed, four injured in gunfight in Srinagar, militants escape

A policeman of the special operations group (SOG) was killed in a gunfight as security forces raided a militant hideout in the Batmaloo area of Srinagar on Sunday. The militants however managed to escape while two of their accomplices were detained, police said.

Four security personnel, including two Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) troopers, were also injured in the shootout that broke out when a pre-dawn raid was launched in the area after police received specific information about the hideout. The highly-congested area is also surrounded by the zonal police headquarters, the police control room and the civil secretariat.

Director general of police (DGP), Shesh Paul Vaid said that SOG jawan, Pervaiz Ahmad, was killed in the exchange of firing. Ahmad, a selection grade constable, was a resident of village Dandote of the state’s Rajouri district.

Police officials said that Ahmad and four others were wounded in the initial burst of fire. “While the searches in the area were going on, terrorists hiding in a house, which had a proper hideout for them, fired indiscriminately on the security forces,” a police spokesman said.

Security forces exercised maximum restraint in retaliation “considering the residential population and other civil establishments around the area”, he added.

“A massive search operation is underway in the area as it is understood that in the exchange of fire, terrorists are also injured,” the spokesman said.

Deputy inspector general, central Kashmir, V K Birdi said the hideout was busted and they have detained two accomplices of the militants.

“There are signs that a militant has been wounded and we are searching the area,” he said.

Police have also recovered some ‘incriminating’ material from the site of encounter.

Meanwhile, authorities also suspended mobile internet services in the capital.

Senior civil and police officers paid tributes to the slain policeman and laid floral wreaths on his mortal remains at the district police lines, Srinagar.

The encounter comes just three days after five militants were killed by security forces in Rafiabad in Baramulla district. It also comes a day after inspector general of police, Kashmir, SP Pani held a meeting to review security readiness for Independence

Day on August 15 in the capital.

In a shoot and scoot attack in Batmaloo last month, militants had killed a CRPF jawan and injured another close to the police control room.

Kashmir has witnessed an increasing number of gunfights between security forces and militants in August, including infiltration attempts across the Line of Control.

So far, 23 persons, including 16 militants, five soldiers and a policeman have been killed in six encounters in August while a civilian was killed in protests after one of the encounters.

First Published: Aug 12, 2018 07:51 IST