Militants attack VIP colony; army officer, four militants killed

Police said the heavily armed guerrillas, who had hurled grenades, fired mortars and used rocket launchers in the battle, had barricaded themselves inside a building in the complex of about 20 government houses.

The encounter began around 1945 hours on Wednesday night and stopped at 2300 hours IST. Militants, who were on the roof-top, resumed firing at 0525 hours IST on Thursday. Security forces retaliated killing two terrorists. The firing stopped after a brief while, they said.

A group of three to seven militants appeared near the complex, which houses residences of Deputy Commissioner K.I. Khan, DIG S.S. Bijral, SSP B.R. Manhas and national conference leader Bashir Ahmed Lone, around 1915 hours IST on Wednesday evening.

Security forces cordoned off the area on receiving the information. On seeing the troops, militants opened fire and lobbed grenades forcing troops to retaliate, the sources said. Khan said “the target of the militants was to hit the VIPs.”

Captain Reddy, who was seriously injured in the encounter, succumbed to injuries in hospital on Thursday. The bodies of two militants were recovered from the roof-top of a house under-construction. Two more bodies were recovered but they were yet to be identified.

“Top police and civil officials and their families could have been their targets and that’s why they took shelter in the area,” a senior police official said.

“The death toll now is four militants and an army captain,” he said.
(Reporting by Ashok Pahalwan in Jammu and Sheik Mushtaq in Srinagar)