2 militants killed in Kulgam encounter

Hideout inside NT’s shop busted

SRINAGAR: Two militants were killed on Monday in an encounter with security forces in Kulgam district, while a terrorist hideout was busted in Pulwama district inside a shop belonging to a Naib Tehsildar.
The identity of the slain militants was not revealed as per the new policy of security forces, in view of the outbreak of Coronavirus pandemic, even as internet services were suspended in Kulgam and Shopian district to prevent any huge gathering.
Two militants were killed in the gunfight that raged at Damhal Hanjipora area in South Kashmir's Kulgam district on Monday morning, officials said.
“During the intervening night of 24 and 25 May, on a specific input a cordon & search operation was launched jointly by Kulgam Police, 34 RR and CRPF 18 Bn at Khud Hanjipora area of district Kulgam,” a police spokesman said.
During the search operation, the hiding terrorists fired on the joint search party. The fire was retaliated leading to an encounter.
“In the ensuing encounter, two unidentified terrorists were killed and the bodies were retrieved from the site of encounter,” he said, adding that identification and affiliation of the killed terrorists was being ascertained.
“Incriminating material including arms & ammunition were recovered from the site of encounter. All these materials have been taken into case records for further investigation and to probe their complicity in other terror crimes,” he said, adding that it was a clean operation and no collateral damage took place during the encounter.
“In this connection case FIR No. 25/2020 under relevant sections of law stands registered in Police Station Manzgam and investigation has been initiated,” he said.
Soon after the encounter, clashes erupted between security forces and protesters near the site of gunfight in Manzgam Dh pora area of the district, but there were no reports of any injuries to anybody, even as the authorities snapped the internet services in the twin districts of South kashmir, Shopian and Kulgam.
A separate search operation, on the basis of a credible input, was launched by Pulwama Police, 44 RR and CRPF 182/183 Battalion at Bellow Dhargund in Pulwama.
During the searches in the area, the joint team busted a hideout in a shop belonging to one person identified as Nazir Ahmad Wani son of Abdul Ahad Wani resident of Bellow Dhargund, officials said.
Wani is a government employee and is presently posted as Naib Tehsildar in Tehsil Pulwama.
“The joint team was able to recover incriminating materials including huge quantity of arms and ammunition from the hideout. During the course of investigation, Nazir’s involvement in providing logistic support to the terrorists was also learnt about,” said a spokesman.
The Police have registered a case FIR No.39/2020 under relevant sections of law in Police Station Rajpora and initiated further investigation into the matter.