Solider abducted by militants in Kashmir's Shopian

Militants abducted a soldier, who was reportedly on leave, from south Kashmir’s Shopian district on Thursday.

A police officer said the militants abducted the soldier, Aurangzeb, when he was travelling in a private vehicle. A resident of Poonch in Jammu region, Aurangzeb belongs to the 44-Rashtriya Rifles (RR) battalion and was posted in Shopian.

“At around 9 am, army men from 44-RR camp at Shadimarg stopped a private vehicle and asked the driver to drop the soldier in Shopian. When the vehicle was near Kalampora, militants came in front of the vehicle and abducted the army man,” the official said.

Reports said that a manhunt has been launched to trace the abducted soldier. Sources said he was part of the army team which killed top commander of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen Sameer ‘Tiger’ last month.

On May 10, 2016, Lieutenant Ummer Fayaz, a 22-year-old army officer from Shopian, who was on leave, was abducted by militants from his relative's house. His bullet-riddled body was found in Herman area of Shopian next morning.

The latest incident has come at a time when security forces have suspended anti-militancy operations in Kashmir under a peace initiative. While the prospects of extending the Ramzan ceasefire were bright, the abduction of a soldier on leave may force the Center to think about its policy.

The suspension of security operations in the Valley has helped improve local sentiment and provided a break from the cycle of violence.