The person, who snatched a rifle during questioning inside a police camp in south Kashmir’s Pulwama on Wednesday and injured a policeman, was killed in an overnight operation on Thursday.
“After failing in all efforts to ensure his surrender, the terror operative was engaged in a gunfight and was neutralised. The snatched weapon was recovered from the possession of the terror operative,” Inspector General of Police (IGP) Vijay Kumar said.
He was identified as Mohd. Amin Malik, son of Abdul Ahad Malik, from Nagbal Machhma, Tral, and was an active terrorist of the Hizbul Mujahideen in the past and was arrested in 2003. His brother Shabir Malik was also a terrorist of the Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind outfit and was killed in an encounter in 2019.
“The terror operative was on police remand and was brought from the Police Station Tral to the police component on June 2, 2021 for further interrogation. During the interrogation, the terror operative got hold of the service rifle (AK-47) of a constable, Amjad Khan, and fired indiscriminately with the intention to kill the police personnel,” the police said.
Mr. Khan was “critically wounded” in the firing.
“His mother and an executive magistrate were brought to the site and repeated sincere efforts were made to persuade him to throw away the weapon and surrender. However, he showed complete defiance. One of the police personnel was hit with a bullet on the chest and survived because of the bulletproof jacket,” the police said.
The police claimed that the slain “terror operative” was arrested on May 30, 2021 along with incriminating materials, arms, ammunition and explosives.
“Unlicensed 12 bore guns, live rounds, explosives, iron, steel balls, nine feature phones and other warlike stores used in fabrication of IEDs were recovered,” the police said.
The police said it had registered an FIR into the incident.
Police bar protected persons
The police on Thursday said no protected person should go anywhere without Personal Security Officers (PSOs) in the Kashmir valley.
“Any visits will be allowed only after a ground assessment of local threat is done. It’s requested to all the protected persons not to violate the standard operating procedure and risk their lives unnecessarily,” IGP Kumar said.
The fresh direction comes a day after a BJP leader, also a municipal councillor, was killed in a militant attack in Pulwama’s Tral.
The BJP leader was a protected person and decided to visit Tral without his PSOs, the police said.
