Five non-local labourers were abducted and later shot dead by unidentified militants in South Kashmir’s Kulgam district on Tuesday evening.
The attack took place on a day when a delegation of European Union MP’s is on a two-day visit to Kashmir to access the first-hand ground situation in the state post abrogation of Article 370.
Sources said a group of masked militants appeared Katrasu village in Kulgam, 70 km from here at around 7 pm, and abducted six non-local labourers. Later bodies of five among them were recovered at some distance by the police, while the sixth one was found critically injured, sources said.
The three among the slain were identified as Mohd Rafi, Qamardin and Mursileen, while the injured was identified as Zahoordin. Initial reports suggest that they were involved in construction work in the area, and belonged to West Bengal.
"We have rushed a police party headed by the Deputy Inspector General of South Kashmir," Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police Dilbag Singh was quoted by NDTV, adding that multiple bodies have been recovered.
In the last two weeks, 11 non-locals have been shot dead in South Kashmir districts of Shupiyan, Kulgam, Anantnag and Pulwama by the militants. The slain include truck drivers involved in the transportation of fruit, migrant labourers and an apple trader from Punjab.
In the last two months, the militants have repeatedly issued threats to non-locals to vacate the state.