Ayodhya attack mastermind shot in Poonch encounter

Five years after a fidayeen attack at the Ram Janmabhoomi complex at Ayodhya, security forces gunned down its mastermind Abu Dawood at Mendhar in Poonch district of the Jammu region on Sunday night.

Dawood had been with the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) for the past decade and was a divisional commander of the terror outfit. He was in charge of the twin districts of Rajouri and Poonch in the Jammu region.

A few photographs of Osama Bin Laden were recovered from his possession. The Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) resident was killed in a joint operation of the army and the police.

“One AK-47 rifle, three magazines, one I-com set, one pouch, one mobile, one Aircel and one Airtel SIM, one JeM stamp and Rs1,030 in Indian currency were recovered from the encounter site,” said Manmohan Singh, senior superintendent of police, Poonch.

One of the most-wanted militants, Dawood had escaped a nine-day operation at Mendhar forests last year. The army had later called off the operation.

Five armed fidayeen were killed by the police some meters away from sanctum sanctorum at Ayodhya in July 2005. Later, five terrorists were arrested from the Mendhar area of Poonch district in Jammu for their involvement in the attack.