Shock and anger has gripped Kashmir after the two young children of a local Imam were brutally killed in the suburbs of Srinagar on Wednesday morning. The attack took place in the mosque quarters and the assailants also slit open the throat of the Imam’s wife.
The police said three-year old Aaliya Iftikhar and two-year old Mohammad Hashim were declared brought dead by the doctors while Naseema, 40, is battling for her life in the hospital.
“The two children and their mother Naseema, wife of Mohammad Iftikhar Lone, Imam Jamia Masjid Noor, were found with their throats slit at their residence in Iqbalabad. They were shifted to SMHS Hospital in Srinagar where doctors declared the children brought dead. The woman is undergoing treatment,” a police spokesman said.
The police have registered a case and investigation has been put on the fast track to track down the assailants. A forensic science team also inspected the place of occurrence to gather the evidence.
“The father of the children and some others are being questioned by the police,” the spokesman said.
The Imam hails from remote border area of Gurez in Bandipora district. Reports said assailants had attacked his family members when he had gone for leading the dawn prayers after sehri (pre-dawn meals during Ramzan).
The police are waiting for Naseema’s statement which could help them nab the killers.
A pall of gloom descended in the locality after the news spread about the brutal murder of two children in the mosque quarters. The anger has spilled on the social networking sites with netizens demanding stern punishment for the culprits responsible for the incident. “Barbaric. Wonder who could be behind this and why? Not a good sign for the coming times,” said a netizen on Facebook.
A police spokesman said investigations into the incident have started. He said police is working on both the possibilities of the incident being a murder or a case of suicide.
Meanwhile, curfew as imposed in parts of Budgam district in central Kashmir following the sectarian clashes and arson.
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