Six terrorists slain in 2 J&K encounters, one a top Hizb man who planned killing of BJP, RSS men

JAMMU/SRINAGAR: Three terrorists, who took a tailor hostage after they were cornered by security forces in Batote town in Jammu’s Ramban district, were killed on Saturday. Though soldiers managed to rescue the hostage after a nine-hour standoff, an Armyman lost his life.


Of the three terrorists killed in the shootout, one of them, Osama, was a top Hizbul Mujahideen commander who had allegedly planned the killing of BJP state secretary Anil Parihar and his brother last year, and of RSS functionary Chanderkant Sharma and his PSO in April, news agencies reported. The two other terrorists were identified as Zahid and Farooq. ANI tweeted a video showing troops celebrating the successful encounter and chanting slogans.



Three other terrorists were reportedly killed in a separate encounter in Naranag village of J&K’s Ganderbal region, a defence spokesman said. A huge cache of arms and ammunition was recovered, he added. The terrorists had holed up in a house the preceding night. They were killed in the morning, police said. Separately, unidentified terrorists threw a hand grenade at a CFPF camp at Nawakadal, in Old Srinagar city, on Saturday morning. No loss of life or property was reported, police said.

The terrorists killed in Batote had earlier fired at security force personnel who had cornered them after they tried to commandeer a vehicle. “This morning, at about 7.30am, two suspicious individuals tried to stop a vehicle in Batote on NH-244. The driver of the vehicle was alert. He did not stop and informed the nearest Army post. A quick reaction team reacted promptly and contact was established with the suspected terrorists,” a defence spokesman, Lt Col Devender Anand, said.

An exchange of fire followed. The terrorists were hiding in a nullah but the area had been sealed. Reinforcements were rushed to the place, Lt Col Anand added.

“At around 1pm, the terrorists, likely three in number, entered a house and took a man (Vijay Kumar, a tailor) hostage,” he added. At 4.15pm, the security forces neutralised the three terrorists and rescued the hostage,” he said. Naik Rajinder Singh of Jaisalmer lost his life in the encounter.

Security forces had cordoned off the area and traffic from Jammu and Ramban was stopped for the duration of the firefight. Locals in Batote were told by the security forces to remain inside their houses as a safety measure for the hostage and others,” police sources said. They added that para commandos, too, had been deployed in the operation.

Meanwhile, the authorities imposed fresh restrictions in Srinagar due to unease on Saturday following jubilation and the bursting of firecrackers across Srinagar late on Friday evening after Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s UNGA speech, reports said.

Temporary barricades were erected on the streets at Sanatnagar, Rawalpora, Hyderpora and other spots to avert any breach of law and order, a police officer said.

Traffic was thin on Srinagar’s streets. Public transport tried to ply on Saturday morning but stopped due to the tension in the city. Only private vehicles were seen on the roads, reports said.