Srinagar, July 6: At least nine policemen were injured, three of them critically, in twin militant attacks in Indian administered Kashmir on Wednesday.
A police official said suspected militants fired rifle grenade towards police station Sopore, some 54 kms north of Srinagar, the summer capital of Kashmir, this morning. “The grenade, however, missed the intended target and exploded in the compound without causing any loss of life or damage to property,” he said.
He also said after the grenade attack, policemen came out of the police station to conduct combing and search operations. “During this process, an IED planted by militants probably in a two-wheeler, went off with a big bang, injuring nine police men,” he said.
The injured policemen were rushed to a local hospital where from four of the critically injured were referred to SKIMS, Srinagar for specialized treatment. The doctors have termed condition of one of the critically injured policeman Morifat Hussain as “life threatening”.
Police official said window panes of the police station and adjoining houses were damaged due the impact of the second blast, which was so powerful that it’s deafening sound was heard in the entire town
The twin attacks caused panic in the area with people running helter skelter to save their lives. The shopkeepers pulled down shutters of their shops and all means of transport vanished from the roads.
Immediately after the IED blast, police and paramilitary personnel laid siege around the area and launched a massive manhunt to track down the militants responsible for the twin attacks. “The search and combing operation in the area is going on. So far no arrests have taken place.”
