Militants Strike With Grenades; Fire on Cops in Kashmir

Srinagar, Oct 25: The militants on Tuesday staged a comeback and struck at will at four places in Kashmir. They targeted troops with grenades at two places in Srinagar and South Kashmir’s Shopian district and shot at and injured a policeman in another attack.

At around 12:45pm, militants lobbed a grenade towards paramilitary CRPF bunker at the Akhara building in Maisuma area in the heart of city.

“The grenade fell in the bunker and exploded with a big bang, causing injuries to three CRPF men. The injured troopers were rushed to the hospital for treatment,” eyewitnesses said.

Minutes later, suspected militants hurled a grenade towards the police post at the busy Batamaloo area, some 3 kms from city cetre. The grenade, however, missed the intended target and exploded on the road, without causing any damage to property or loss of life.

The grenade attacks caused panic with people running helter skelter. The shopkeepers and businessmen left their shops open and ran for cover.

Immediately after the blasts, police and paramilitary forces cordoned off the areas and launched a manhunt to nab the militants responsible for the attack. Sources said one person was arrested from the Batamaloo area.

A police spokesman said militants also lobbed a grenade towards the police search party at Zainapora in South Kashmir’s Shopian town this afternoon. “The explosive device, however, did not explode. It was later defused by the experts of the bomb disposal squad,” he said.

Police said unknown pistol borne militant shot at and injured a policeman at the General Bus Stand Islamabad in South Kashmir this afternoon. The injured cop identified as Anzar Ahmad was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment, where from doctors referred him to SKIMS Srinagar for specialized treatment.

After the militant attack, police and CRPF men launched a combing operation in the Islamabad bus station to flush out the militants responsible for the attack. However, no arrests were reported.

Fayaz Wani reports on life in Srinagar, Kashmir.