3 militants killed in Shopian gunbattle
Yasin’s Maisuma back in stone pelting mode after Geelani’s release

AHMED ALI FAYYAZ

SRINAGAR, Oct 26: While Police and security forces today claimed to have killed three of the top wanted commanders of Hizbul Mujahideen in a fierce gunbattle in Shopian area of South Kashmir, JKLF Chairman Yasin Malik’s residential locality of Maisuma in the capital city has returned to the stone pelting mode in days of the release of some prominent separatist leaders, including Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Shabir Ahmed Shah, from months of detention. Geelani has, meanwhile, called a shutdown of two days on occasion of the anniversary of the Indian troops’ first arrival in the state in 1947 on October 27th and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s scheduled visit to Kashmir valley on October 28th.

Uptown locality of Maisuma has begun to reverberate with secessionist slogans and clashes between youngsters and Police after weeks of calm that witnessed some wedding rituals of the JKLF Chief Yasin Malik and his return from Islamabad with his Pakistani bride Mashaal Mullick. Even as the number of demonstrators is not legion, their “peaceful violence” has begun to shatter peace in the nearby business hubs of Budshah Chowk, Lalchowk and Hari Singh High Street. In days of the release of some prominent separatist leaders like Geelani and Shah from months of detention, youngsters in Maisuma have resorted to sustained stone pelting from yesterday.

Over a dozen civilians, demonstrators and Police personnel had sustained minor injuries in these clashes on Sunday. Even as the demonstrators had got a reason handy---killing of a youth by troops in Baramulla district and Malik’s temporary detention on way to north Kashmir by Police---they did not cite any fresh ‘cause of action’.

Rumour mongers today had a field day as they spread “news” that a 14-year-old boy, Arif of Zaindar Mohalla, had succumbed to yesterday’s injuries at a hospital. Within minutes, groups of youngsters converged on the bustling business streets in Maisuma-Lalchowk area. They characteristically shouted anti-India and pro-Azadi slogans and resorted to stone pelting not only on the Police and CRPF men prepared for the challenge but also on shopkeepers and scores of private vehicles and commercial buses carrying the commuters in the forenoon.

The shopkeepers haplessly downed their shutters and made desperate attempts to hide themselves from the crossfiring of stones and tearsmoke canisters being traded between the unruly crowds and Police. Police succeeded to disperse small groups of stone pelting youth with retaliation of tearsmoke and baton charge which unusually encouraged the shopkeepers to resume business. However, intermittent clashes in narrow alleys prevented many of the shopkeepers from returning to their job. Police as well as independent sources said that nearly 20 persons, including few Police personnel, sustained injuries and over a dozen of vehicles and shops were damaged in the clashes today.

Back from three-hour-long temporary detention at Police Station Humhama last night, hardliner separatist Geelani today repeated his call of two-day shutdown in the Valley on October 27th and 28th. Addressing a hurriedly organized news conference at his Hyderpora residence, Geelani asked the Kashmiris to observe total shutdown in protest against the maiden landing of the “Indian occupational forces” in Kashmir on Tuesday and in protest of the Prime Minister’s visit on Wednesday. Kashmir valley has been observing shutdown on October 27th since 1989 initially spontaneously but subsequently over a host of calls from militants and separatist leaders.

First plane-load of Indian Army had landed in Srinagar on this day to combat platoons of armed Pakistani tribesmen in 1947. Prime Minister is scheduled to inaugurate extension of limited train service on Anantnag-Qazigund patch of the Udhampur-Baramulla railway track on October 28th. Kashmir’s separatist leaders have been invariably enforcing shutdown in the Valley on occasion of the Indian Prime Minister’s and President’s visit since 1990.

Geelani said at the news conference that he had launched his demilitarization campaign with his visit to Shopian and addressing a gathering there on Friday last. He announced to hold a similar rally at Baramulla in north Kashmir on October 30th and disclosed that his public meetings at different district headquarters in the Valley would be followed by a Valley-wide shutdown and protest programme. He said that he would not relent until the last Indian soldier was withdrawn from the “disputed state”.

Meanwhile, on the eve of 62nd anniversary of their arrival in Jammu & Kashmir, armed forces today claimed to have killed three of the top wanted commanders of Hizbul Mujahideen in a day-long gunbattle in Shopian-Pulwama belt in south Kashmir.

Official sources told Early Times that men from Special Operations Group (SOG) of District Police Shopian alongwith CRPF 14th Bn and troops from Rashtriya Rifles 44 Bn and Para 1 launched a cordon-and-search operation at village Shalidar Nassarpora in Kellar belt between Shopian and Pulwama districts in south Kashmir in the morning today. Sources said that the operation was planned and executed after Police and armed forces learned through source information that three of the top wanted militants of Hizbul Mujahideen were present at a hideout.

As soon as Army and SOG parties zeroed in on the identified hideout, all three of the holed up militants opened fire and made desperate attempts to escape. Troops maintained their firing and succeeded in killing all the three militants in a seven-hour-long fierce gunbattle. Officials claimed that none from Police, CRPF or Army was killed or injured in the gunbattle.

Those killed in the encounter were later identified as Hizbul Mujahideen’s most wanted “Divisional Commander” Saquib and “District Commander” Riyaz Paswal, both hailing from Doda district of Jammu division. Officials said that identification of the third militant killed in the gunbattle was underway. They said that 3 AK rifles, one pistol, one satellite phone, 3 mobile phone sets, one wireless set and 278 rounds of ammunition were recovered from the site of encounter. Officials said that killing of three militants, including two of the most wanted commanders, days after troops had eliminated the leadership of Hizbul Mujahideen’s Pir Panjal Regiment in Kulgam-Gool area, was a deadly jolt for the guerrilla organization.

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