Pak ultra among two killed truck driver in Shopian: Cops

Majid Jahangir
Tribune News Service
Srinagar, October 15

A Pakistani is among two militants who allegedly shot dead a Rajasthani truck driver in a south Kashmir village on Monday evening.

The killing of truck driver Shraief Khan of Baratpur village in Rajasthan at Sindhu Shermal village in Shopian has sparked fear among truckers who were camping in various parts of the Valley to transport apple to various markets in the country.

Around 24 hours of the killing, the police have succeeded in identifying the group involved in the killing. “The killing of the trucker was done jointly by Hizbul Mujahideen and Jaish-e-Mohammad militant groups,” a police officer, privy to the investigation, said. “The mastermind of this killing is militant commander Naveed Babu of the Hizbul. The investigation so far has revealed that two militants involved in the killing were Rahil Magrey of the Hizbul and a Pakistani who is associated with the Jaish. A hunt has been launched to track down the militants.”

During the investigation, the security forces have detained over a dozen people in and around the Sindhu Shermal village for questioning.

The trucker was shot dead at Sindhu Shermal, some 4 km from Shopian town when he was loading the apple from an orchard. His bullet-riddled body was found near the truck which was also set ablaze. According to the police, the villagers who tried save the non-local driver were also thrashed by militants.

This is the first killing of a non-local in Kashmir since the special status of J&K was abrogated by the Union Government on August 5. The killing has triggered fresh woes for Valley’s apple industry, with several truckers fleeing the place.

“It is natural that the killing will cause more problems for us. In Shopian alone, we have around 95 per cent truckers from outside the state and they are naturally scared,” said a leading fruit grower in Shopian.

Suspected militants in the first week of September had attacked a prominent fruit merchant in north Kashmir’s Sopore that had left four persons, including a five-year-old baby girl, injured. Militants had last month warned growers not to transport apple to other parts of India.