Hizbul terrorist behind killing of Rifleman Aurangzeb among 4 shot

Majid Jahangir & Suhail A Shah

Tribune News Service

Srinagar/Anantnag, May 18

The security forces in Kashmir today killed four militants, including the main suspect in last year’s killing of Rifleman Aurangzeb.

In the past eight days, 12 militants have been killed in encounters across Kashmir.

On Saturday, the Valley witnessed three gunfights with four militants being killed in two of them. The first gunfight broke out at Panzgam Awantipora in Pulwama district where three local militants of Hizbul Mujahideen, who were holed up inside a house, were killed. The gunfight broke out around 2 am.

The slain militants were identified as Showkat Dar of Panzgam Awantipora, Irfan War of Wadoora Payeen Sopore and Muzaffar Sheikh of Tahab Pulwama.

“As per police record, Showkat Dar was part of a group involved in the killing of Army jawan Aurangzeb in 2018. He was also involved in the killing of policeman Aqib Ahmad Wagay last year,” a police spokesman said.

Rifleman Aurangzeb of 44 Rashtriya Rifles, who was off duty, was on way back home to Poonch for Eid when he was abducted by a group of militants on June 14 and later killed in Pulwama. Sources said at least three houses were partially damaged during the Panzgam gunfight. There were also reports of clashes at some places, including near the site of encounter.

As the operation was underway at Panzgam, a brief exchange of fire took place in Anantnag district. The shooting took place during a cordon and search operation at Dahrun Dooru Anantnag.

“Initially, contact was established with the militants, but they managed to sneak out of the cordon,” a police official from Anantnag said, adding that the operation was called off after thorough searches in the area yielded nothing.

The third gunfight broke out in north Kashmir’s Sopore sub-district this afternoon in which a militant was killed.

The operation in the Hathlangoo area of Sopore was launched on a credible input about the militant presence in the area.

After the conclusion of five-phased polling on May 6, the security forces have apparently stepped up anti-militancy operations. Twelve militants, two Army men and two civilians have been killed in various gunfights in Kashmir after the polling ended.

In the entire month of April, when the five-phased elections began, 11 militants were killed. 

According to official data, 85 militants and 60 security men have been killed this year.

Recent encounters

• May 10: Militant of ISJK killed in gunfight in Shopian
• May 12: Two local militants of Lashkar killed in Shopian 
• May 16: Three Jaish ultras, a soldier and a civilian killed in Pulwama gunfight; two local Hizb militants, a civilian and a soldier killed in Shopian 
• May 18: Three militants of Hizbul killed in Panzgam Awantipora Pulwama; local militant killed in Sopore