Inspector-general of police (IGP) (Kashmir zone) Shiv Murari Sahai said the militants fired at a police party when they were asked to stop at a naka at the posh Qamarwari market on the outskirts of Srinagar.
Police stopped and killed three militants on Monday who were to launch terror attacks in Srinagar. A constable was killed in the exchange of fire. The incident comes two days after security forces killed two top Pakistani Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) commanders and busted their hideout at the Moldari Wadder forests in the border district of Kupwara.
Inspector-general of police (IGP) (Kashmir zone) Shiv Murari Sahai said the militants fired at a police party when they were asked to stop at a naka at the posh Qamarwari market on the outskirts of Srinagar.
“We set up nakas after getting information that militants were moving about in Srinagar. When the motorcycle-borne militants were asked to stop at Qamarwari this afternoon, they opened fire and killed our head constable. Our boys immediately retaliated and killed three militants,” said Sahai.
The identity of the militants is yet to be ascertained. The slain cop has been identified as Mohommad Ashraf Shah of Lar-Ganderbal, which is the assembly constituency of chief minister Omar Abdullah.
The attack comes 24 days after a secret note was circulated to police officers that militants were trying to sneak into the civil lines area to carry out suicide attacks on police camps and vital installations.
The November 5 police note was specifically issued to pre-empt any attack during Barack Obama’s visit. Though no attack took place during the high-profile visit, militants were on the loose. This is the first incident in Srinagar after the Maloora encounter of October 22 when security forces intercepted and killed three Jaish-e-Mohommad militants who were on a mission to carry out fidayeen attacks in Srinagar city.
“For many years, militants tried to vitiate the atmosphere in Srinagar but each and every time their attempts were foiled. There are several unregistered motorcycles used by stone-throwers and militants. We are going to check those and try to crack the case,” Sahai said.
The encounter comes barely two days after LeT top guns hailing from Pakistan were killed in Handwara.
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