Two LeT militants surrender after brief gunfight in Kashmir: Police

They said contact was established with the militants hiding in the area and they were appealed by their families and security forces to surrender

Two Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) militants, who according to police were involved in the recent killing of a personal security officer (PSO) of a PDP leader, surrendered on Tuesday after a brief gunfight in south Kashmir's Kulgam district.

Reports said that the gunfight erupted after a joint team of army’s 34-Rashtriya Rifles and J&K police launched a cordon-and-search-operation in Tongdounu area of Kulgam during wee hours of Tuesday.

As the security forces approached towards the suspected spot, the hiding militants fired upon them, triggering off a gunfight, reports added.

Sources said that as the encounter was going on, the family members, including parents, of the trapped militants, were brought to the site by the police to persuade them to surrender. “The militants surrendered after persuasion by all including their families,” they said.

Confirming the development, Inspector General Police (IGP) Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, said that after an initial exchange of fire, two militants belonging to LeT surrendered after they were offered to lay down their arms.

Kumar claimed that both the surrendered militants were involved in the recent killing of a PSO of PDP leader in Natipora area of Srinagar. Arms and ammunition, including two pistols and some incriminating documents, were recovered from the possession of surrendered militants.

In recent months, security forces have been offering local militants to surrender during encounters. Nearly a dozen militants have laid down their arms in 2020.