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Top Jaish commander gunned down in Pulwama encounter
Police said Sofi was active as a militant since June 2019, figuring among the most-wanted Jaish commanders operating in the Kashmir Valley.
Security forces on Wednesday gunned down Shamus-ud-din Sofi, a top Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) commander responsible for several killings of civilians, in an encounter in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district.
The Jammu and Kashmir Police issued a statement narrating the sequence of events. According to them, they received intelligence about the presence of militants in Tilwani Mohalla, in the Waggad area of Tral, and undertook a joint cordon and search operation with the army and Central Reserve Police Force.
“The terrorists were given repeated opportunities to surrender; instead, they fired indiscriminately on the joint search party, which retaliated. In the ensuing encounter, one terrorist was killed, and his body was retrieved from the site of the encounter.
He has been identified as Shamus-ud-din Sofi alias ShamSofi, a top commander of JeM,” said a police spokesperson on condition of anonymity.
Police said Sofi was active as a militant since June 2019, figuring among the most-wanted Jaish commanders operating in the Kashmir Valley.
“He was also part of groups involved in several terror cases, including attacks on security establishments and atrocities on civilians, and there were several cases against him,” the spokesperson said.
The police said Sofi was first arrested in 2004 and detained under Public Safety Act for aiding terror activities.Sofi was arrested for a period of two months and then released on bail.
“He provided logistical support to terror groups operating in Tral before joining an outfit himself,” the police spokesperson said, adding that Sofi also motivated local youth to join terror outfits, recruiting some himself.
According to an official document, in 2007, Sofi was arrested again in another case. In 2008, he was detained under PSA as he continued his anti-national activities before being released after the Jammu and Kashmir high court order on bail. In 2019, Sofi left his home and joined the ranks of JeM and was active in the region since then.
Sofi lured several young people to join terrorism . He was involved in two cases of civilian killings -- of Mohammad Ayoub Ahenger in 2020 and Shakeela in 2021, states the document. In January 2020, during an encounter in Pulwama’s Khrew, Sofi’s escaped, the document added.
So far, 121 militants, including top commanders of various militant outfits, have been killed in Kashmir this year. This month alone, 10 militants have been killed in separate encounters.
Since Sunday night, six encounters have taken place in Kashmir, following a spate of killings of civilians, including a well-known Srinagar chemist and two school teachers, for which a little-known outfit called The Resistance Front, believed to be backed by the Lashkar-e-Taiba, has claimed responsibility.
