Militants abduct seven relatives of policemen in Kashmir, police to launch manhunt

Keeping up the pressure on the Jammu & Kashmir police, militants have abducted seven relatives of police officers from south Kashmir’s Kulgam and Pulwama districts, officials said.

Following this abductions, authorities sounded a high alert across south Kashmir and crackdown on the alarming trend of militants going after relatives of police personnel.

A high-level security meeting was held by top brass of security forces on Thursday evening where it was decided that a massive manhunt would be held Friday to trace the abducted persons, reported IANS.

Militants on Thursday evening abducted Zubair Ahmad, son of a policeman and Arif Ahmed , brother of a middle-rung police officer from Arwani area of Kulgam district, Faizan Ahmad, son of a policeman from Kharpora in Kulgam, Sumar Ahmad Rather, son of a policeman from Yaripora in Kulgam, and Gowhar Ahmad, brother of a deputy superintendent of police from Katapora in Kulgam, it said.

Earlier on Thursday, militants abducted Nasir Ahmad, son of a policeman from Midoora village in Pulwama’s Tral area, while Asif Ahmad, son of local policeman Rafiq Ahmad Rather, was abducted from Pinglish village of Tral in Pulwama on Wednesday.

The abductions follow a spate of attacks on policemen in the state since Eid ul Adha on August 22.

In one of the deadliest attacks on the police in the state in recent months, militants shot dead four policemen in Shopian district on Wednesday, hours after security forces killed Altaf Ahmad Dar, a top commander of the Hizbul Mujahedeen, and his associate, in neighbouring Anantnag.

On Eid day, militants shot dead policeman Faiyaz Ahmad Shah outside the mosque where he had gone to offer Eid prayers. Hours later, militants killed another policeman, Mohammad Yaqoob Shah, outside his house when he was on his way to begin his duty at Pulwama and an hour later, inspector Mohd Ashraf Dar who was posted at district police lines Budgam was killed inside his house in Pulwama.

A total of 33 policemen have been killed by militants across the state so far this year.