Days after terror group’s ‘hit list’, Home Secretary reviews security situation in J&K

PTI

New Delhi, December 6

Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla on Tuesday reviewed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir, officials said, days after a terrorist group released a “hit list” of 56 employees belonging to the Kashmiri Pandit community.

The meeting was also attended by other senior officials of the ministry, paramilitary forces, the Jammu and Kashmir administration and the police. The meeting took stock of the prevailing security situation in the UT, an official said.

It is a routine monthly review meeting and some of the representatives of the J&K administration attended it through video conferencing, another official said.

There have been reports that people from the Kashmiri Pandit community working in the Valley are in a state of panic after a terrorist group released a “hit list” of 56 employees from among them.

A blog linked to The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of the Lashkar-e-Toiba, published the list of 56 Kashmiri Pandit employees who were recruited under the Prime Minister’s Rehabilitation Package (PMRP), and warned of mounting attacks on them.

In the aftermath of targeted killings by terrorists, several Kashmiri Pandits employed in the Valley under the PMRP have shifted to Jammu and are on a protest for over 200 days demanding relocation of the rest of them.

There have been sporadic incidents of violence in Jammu and Kashmir in recent months that include attacks on civilians, security personnel and infiltration bids from across the border, officials said.

In the aftermath of targeted killings, several Kashmiri Pandits employed in the valley under the PM Rehabilitation Package have shifted to Jammu and are on a protest for over 200 days demanding relocation of the rest of them.

The government had informed Parliament that 118 civilians, including five Kashmiri Pandits and 16 other Hindus and Sikhs, were killed in Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 till July this year. — TNS

‘BJP govt has failed to protect Pandits’

Srinagar: Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday accused the BJP of “exploiting the pain and suffering” of Kashmiri Pandits and said the government had failed to protect the minority community. “This government has failed to protect Kashmiri Pandits. It is only exploiting their pain and suffering for its own benefit,” she said. PTI

IED recovered in Shopian

Srinagar: An improvised explosive device (IED) was recovered by the security forces in Shopian district on Tuesday. The police said, “A joint team of the local police and the Army recovered the IED from Shirmal village.” IANS

Apni Party for relocating employees

Jammu: The Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party on Tuesday expressed concerns over the “hit list” issued by The Resistance Front and demanded the L-G to relocate community employees to Jammu from the Valley. General secretary of party’s youth wing Abhay Bakaya expressed concerns over the “information breach” and asked the authorities to own up to its failure in preventing it.

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