Srinagar, June 29 (KNO): Three militants including the lone serving militant from Doda district of Jammu were killed in an encounter that broke out in Runipora area of Shangus belt of south Kashmir’s Anantnag district today morning, police said Monday.
With the killing of a militant from Doda district of Jammu, the J&K police declared Doda as militancy free.
Director General of Police (J&K) Dilbagh Singh said that acting on a tip off, joint teams of police, Army and CRPF laid a siege in Runipora in Anantnag district early morning.
“When the teams closed in on a spot where militants were hiding, they opened fire and in a very neat and clean operation, three terrorists were killed,” he said, adding that there was no collateral damage.
The DGP Singh said among the three militants is one last surviving militants from Doda district of Jammu, who had shifted his base from Doda to Srinagar. “With his killing, Doda district of Jammu is now militancy free,” the DGP added.
A police spokesman said that the Doda militancy has been identified as Masood Ahmed, who was involved in a rape case and was absconding ever since. He had later joined Hizbul Mujahideen and was operating in south Kashmir as one of the commanders of the outfit. “There is no active terrorist in Doda district of Jammu region now,” he said.
The identity of two other militants is being ascertained and it is believed that they were locals and affiliated with the Lashkar outfit. A police spokesman in a statement issued here said that the bodies of slain militants have been sent to Handwara for last rites after collection of their DNA. “In case any family claims the slain militants to be their kith or kin, they can come forward for identification and also take part in the last rites,” he said in a statement.
With the killing of three militants today, the total number of militants killed this year in Kashmir has reached 116. Today’s encounter was 13th in a row in South Kashmir in the month of June in which so far 36 militants have been killed—(KNO)