The J&K Police on Thursday said it had been “tracking the movement of Hizbul Mujahideen’s chief operation commander Riyaz Naikoo for the past six months” and had finally received “pinpoint tip-off” on him two days ago.
Meanwhile, 34 people, including 18 police personnel, were injured and a civilian reportedly died in clashes in Pulwama in the past 24 hours, forcing the authorities to continue with the suspension of Internet and calling services on mobile phones for the second day on Thursday.
‘Hideouts busted’
“We busted five of Naikoo’s hideouts this year. He was under the radar for the past six months. We also carried out multiple unsuccessful raids to nab him. Of late, we managed to arrest six to seven of his overground workers and they were interrogated. Finally, we got a pinpoint tip-off about his presence two days ago,” Inspector General of Police (IGP)-Kashmir Vijay Kumar said in a press conference in Srinagar.
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He said a small police team cordoned off the location at which Naikoo was hiding first, but failed to establish any contact. “However, it was only after waiting for the whole night that Naikoo and his associate opened fire around 9 a.m. on Wednesday,” Mr. Kumar said.
IGP Kumar said Naikoo was the third top militant commander, besides Qari Yasin and Burhan Koka, killed since January in Kashmir. “Naikoo had a grip over his ranks and influenced local youth to join militants through his videos. The recruitment graph is likely to go down now," he said.
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This year, security forces had managed to kill 64 militants in 27 operations, and arrested 25 militants, the police said.
Protests in Valley
Meanwhile, one civilian was killed and 34 people, including 19 police personnel, were injured in protests in south Kashmir sparked by the killing of the militant commander.
“Around 15 people who threw stones and 18 police personnel were injured in the protests, mostly concentrated around the Beighpora area of Pulwama,” said IGP Kumar.
A civilian, Jehangir Yusuf Wani, 32, a resident of Pulwama, reportedly died due to bullet injuries in the Pulwama district hospital on Wednesday.
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“So far, no one has reported the death [of Wani] to the Awantipora Police. The local police may initiate proceedings under Section 174 as reportedly the family buried the body late in the night,” IGP Kumar said.
Hanifa Bano, 45, a resident of Chursoo, Awantipora, suffered pellet injuries in the eye during a clash between security forces and protesters on Thursday. “Yes, she has pellet injuries but the injuries are minor in nature,” IGP Kumar said.
