A top commander of Jaish-e-Muhammad outfit, who was one among the most wanted 12 militants, was among three ultras killed in an encounter with security forces in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Friday.
Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, identified the slain commander as Waleed Bhai, who was the IED expert and had escaped from the cordon four times so far.
Addressing a presser here, the IGP said that acting on a tip off, a joint operation was laid at Nagnad village of Damhal-Hanjipora in Kulgam, in which three militants, including Waleed, an IED expert, who was Jaish commander and one among the most wanted 12 ultras, were killed.
The identity of the other two slain militants, he said, is being ascertained. Kumar said earlier a Lashkar-e-eToiba militant was killed along with two other ultras in Sopore area of north Kashmir recently. “He was also among the most wanted 12. So, ten more are still on the run who are most wanted,” the IGP said.
Terming today’s encounter a ‘big success’ for the security forces, he said Waleed was active for the past one and a half years and was operating in south Kashmir. “We have recovered a US made M-4 carbine from the slain commander. His killing is big achievement for us,” Kumar said
The Kashmir police chief said that another militant who is among the most wanted remaining ten is Sajad alias Haider, who is active in Sopore and had recently released a video asking police not to target militant families. “He was the one involved in the abduction of a BJP worker, who was rescued later,” he said.
The IGP said that police doesn’t target the family members of militants nor does it indulge in any sort of harassment to them. “There is only one case where we arrested the mother of a slain militant, against whom there were ample proofs. Even the court rejected her bail plea given the concrete evidence we had against her involvement in the militancy,” he said.
The IGP said the manhunt will continue to track down the remaining ten militants who are most wanted which include five from Hizbul Mujahideen, two from the Jaish and three from the Lashkar.
Asked about militancy in north Kashmir, Kumar said there are less number of active militants in the north. “Our camps are located far from each other, which gives a chance to survive for a bit longer compared to the south. We have started operations in the north and all the remaining militants will be killed,” he asserted.