In an operation by the police, three “militants” were killed in a busy market in an uptown area of Rambagh in Srinagar on Wednesday evening.
The police identified the dead as The Resistance Front “commander” Mehran Yaseen Shalla from Jamalatta here, Manzoor Ahmad Mir and Arafat Ahmad Sheikh from Pulwama.
Local militants feeling the heat in Kashmir Valley
According to the police, Shalla was behind the killing of Meeran Ali Sheikh, sub-inspector Arshad Ahmad, school principal Supinder Kour and teacher Deepak Chand in Srinagar.
Eyewitnesses said policemen, many in plainclothes, had laid an ambush on the busy Lal Chowk-Rambagh route and opened fire upon the men travelling in a car near Rambagh.
Women were seen crying and raising slogans on the roadside, as the street was splashed with blood.
“A small team from the Srinagar police signalled a suspected Santro car to stop. However, the terrorists started firing indiscriminately, while trying to flee under the cover of fire. The fire was, however, effectively retaliated. Three militants were killed in the operation,” Inspector-General of Police Vijay Kumar said.
“Prior to joining the terror ranks, several cases regarding involvement in stone-throwing incidents were also registered against Shalla. Mr. Sheikh was involved in the killing of a non-local labourer in the Litter area of Pulwama,” the police said.
The police said they recovered incriminating material, including arms and ammunition, from them, but did not providing details.
