Hizbul Mujahideen commander Abdul Qayoom Najar killed in Baramulla

“He was returning to Kashmir to take over the command of Hizbul Mujahideen in the wake of elimination of top commanders of the outfit by security forces,” he told PTI. “Najar started his career as a terrorist with the killing of Hizb commander Abdul Majid Dar in 2003,” he added.

The officer said Najar was called to the base camp in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir by his handlers in 2015 after he fell out with the Hizb leadership. “He was now tasked with reviving the outfit in Kashmir in the wake of elimination of top militants,” he said.

For years Najar, one of the most wanted militants in North Kashmir has kept the police and the army on toes. He had managed to give a slip to security forces on numerous occasions.

Najar came to the limelight after the attacks on mobile towers and killings of six civilians in Sopore and its adjacent villages. Though the Hizbul Mujahideen had been blaming the Indian agencies for these attacks, however, police officials were convinced that these killings and attacks are the handiwork of Najar and his associate Imtiyaz Kundoo.

J&K: Terrorist killed by security forces in general area Zorawar (Uri) earlier today identified as Lashkar e- Islam Chief Abdul Qayoom Najar pic.twitter.com/Z8MWm8Wilw

— ANI (@ANI) September 26, 2017

In 2015, police announced a reward of rupees 10 lakhs for information leading to the arrest of Najar. Since the police had no picture of him, so they pasted a picture of a shopkeeper claiming it to be Najar.

Najar, the longest surviving militant, was one of the top commanders of Hizbul Mujahideen. A resident of Sopore town, he joined militancy barely at an age of 16. He was arrested in 1992 and later released. After his release, Najar recycled into the militancy in 1995. Though for many years, Najar was a militant, he always aspired to become a top commander after killing and arrest of top Hizbul commanders, Najar was the senior most active commander and thus the de-facto operational chief of Hizb.

(With PTI inputs)