Led by local LeT commander Bashir Ahmad Wani alias Bashir Lashkari, the group -- two Pakistani terrorists and three locals -- had ambushed a police vehicle near Tajwara village in south Kashmir's Anantnag district.
Jammu and Kashmir police have identified the five member-group of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which killed and disfigured six policemen, including Station House Officer of Achabal police station Feroz Ahmad Dar, on Friday.
Led by local LeT commander Bashir Ahmad Wani alias Bashir Lashkari, the group -- two Pakistani terrorists and three locals -- had ambushed a police vehicle near Tajwara village in south Kashmir's Anantnag district.
Hailing from Sopshali village of Kokernag in Anantnag, Lashkari is the district commander of LeT for Anantnag. He is one of the 11 most wanted terrorists in Kashmir, according to a list released by the Indian Army recently. Lashkari had become active again on October 2, 2015, after his release from prison, and has since been carrying a bounty of Rs 15 lakh.
"It was a group of five terrorists headed by Bashir Lashkari. He was accompanied by two foreign terrorists and a local terrorist. When SHO was returning they were ambushed," Munir Ahmad Khan, Inspector General of Police, Kashmir Zone, said.
Lashkari has been in-and-out of jail since 2003 when he first joined the terrorist organisation. Officials said that after his multiple releases from jail, he joined LeT and rose to the rank of a district commander.
"The perpetrators of the crime will be tracked down and they will face the law. We will see that justice is delivered to victims' families. J&K police's resolve is to eliminate terrorism and restore peace in the Kashmir valley," Dr SP Vaid, Director General of Police, Jammu and Kashmir, said.
Vaid said that the ambush on the police party was in retaliation to an encounter that took place early on Friday at Kulgam, where LeT's commander Junaid Matoo was killed. "It is a definitely a revenge attack because Junaid Matoo was an important part of LeT. They have suffered a huge loss," he added.
Police are also investigating an insider's probable involvement in the attack by passing off information to the terrorists about the cops movement. "We are investigating all angles," a source said.
Hailing from Pulwama district, 32-year-old Feroz Dar was 2011 batch Sub Inspector of J&K Police. A highly qualified officer, he had MSc and MPhil in Zoology. "Did you ever stop for a while and asked yourself, what is going to happen to me the first night in my grave? Think about the moment your body is being washed and prepared to your grave," Dar had written on his Facebook page in 2013.
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