Srinagar/Bandipore, Oct 18: Two militants and a trooper were killed in separate encounters in north Kashmir, while police recovered an IED near Police Control Room Srinagar here, officials and reports said on Monday.
“Troopers of 3-Madras cordoned off Barzulla area in Bandipore this morning and launched searches. Militants present there opened fire on the search party which was retaliated triggering an encounter in which a militant was killed,” a police officer told Greater Kashmir.
 “Another militant, who was injured, took shelter in a local Masjid. Troopers sealed the Masjid by installing barricades and barbed wire. The holed militant resorted to indiscriminate firing and tried to break the cordon. In the ensuing battle, the militant was killed,” the police officer added.
 Meanwhile, troopers arrested a civilian Muzaffar Ahmad Khan son of Abdul Jabar Khan for allegedly providing medical aid to the wounded militant. Search operation in the area was on when reports last came in.
 An elder of the village told Greater Kashmir that army was frequently searching the village for the past few days which created panic in the area and many youth fled due to fear.
 As soon as the news of killing of militants reached Bandipora town in the evening, people, mostly youths, took to streets in old Jamia road and raised anti-India and pro-freedom slogans.
 The protesters engaged police and CRPF men in pitched battles. Ten youth were injured in police and CRPF action and the protests were going on till late evening.

TROOPER KILLED
 A trooper of army’s 4 JAT— Constable Kartar Singh—was killed when the troops confronted a group of militants near the Line of Control (LoC) in  Uri sector of north Kashmir’s Varmul district.
 The defence spokesman J S Brar claimed that a group of heavily armed militants tried to infiltrate through Golta Nallah, Uri last evening. On being spotted by the army troops guarding the LoC, militants opened heavy fire, killing a trooper Kartar Singh (Belt No 3203255X).
 The militants, he said, retrieved towards Pakistan Administered Kashmir (PaK) taking advantage of the darkness.

GUNFIGHT RAGES IN HANDWARA 
 Meanwhile, a fresh encounter erupted between militants and troops of 21 Rashtriya Rifles in Bawan Watsar area in Handwara town of the frontier district of Kupwara.
 Ahead of security meet, IED found near PCR
 Just a few minutes before a crucial security meeting here, police today detected a Improvised Explosive Device (IED) outside the Police Control Room (PCR).
 A plastic can containing a nine-volt battery, a programmed Timer Device (PTD) and some black powdery substance, was found by a police patrol just outside the PCR complex near Batamaloo here, officials said.
 Sleuths of bomb disposal squad were rushed to the spot to defuse the explosive material which weighed around 1.5 kilograms, they added.

Lastupdate on : Mon, 18 Oct 2010 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Mon, 18 Oct 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Tue, 19 Oct 2010 00:00:00 IST