A senior police officer and a militant were killed on Sunday in an ongoing gunfight between government forces and militants in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Aman Thakur and the militant were killed in Turigam village in fighting that also left an Army Major and a soldier wounded.
“In the ongoing encounter at Turigam Yaripora we have lost a young colleague Dy. Superintendent of Police Operations Shri Aman Kumar Thakur while fighting militants in Kulgam today,” said a police spokesman. “A resident of Gogla district Doda, DySP Aman Kumar is survived by aged parents, wife Sarla Devi and 6 year old son Arya.”
“The body of the slain militant is lying at the encounter site and is yet to be recovered,” reported news agency GNS.
Reports said two to three militants from Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM), which claimed responsibility for the February 14 suicide bombing that killed 40 CRPF troopers, were hiding in the village.
Clashes occurred near the gunfight site as civilians tried to disrupt the operation against the militants. Security forces used tear smoke and pellets to disperse the mobs.
The Army’s Rashtriya Rifles, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the Special Operations Group (SOG) of state police started a cordon and search operation in Turigam after being tipped off about the presence of militants there.
“As the security forces tightened the cordon, militants fired at them, triggering an encounter which is going on,” a police officer said. (With inputs from IANS)