First for J-K: Militant from Bihar killed in encounter

A militant belonging to Bihar was among four people killed in an encounter in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district last night, the first to be gunned down by the state police.

A militant belonging to Bihar was among four people killed in an encounter in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district last night, the first to be gunned down by the state police. The discovery has worried authorities as more than 30,000 Bihari labourers come to the Valley every year in search of work on fields or construction sites.

Police identified “Moin Ansari s/o Jabir Ansari of Pratap Ganj, post office Gobindpur district Sapul, Bihar” from a card on him. Police informers had, earlier, reported sighting the militant at Budroo village where nine Nepalese labourers were killed last month.

‘‘We are investigating the case. And a message will be sent to Bihar police to ascertain his exact whereabouts,’’ South Kashmir DIG Hemant Kumar Lohia said. Sources said Ansari had been active in Kulgam district for the past three years where he worked at a local automobile shop as a mechanic and painter. He came on the police radar in December 2004 after the police came to know of Bihari militant in the area. Police said Ansari had adopted three or four code names — Shakir, Omar, Hyder and Oman. ‘‘He (Ansari) used to change his aliases in different operations,’’ said a police officer. Ansari had also been learning Kashmiri; a diary recovered from him showed he was familiar with the language.

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