KASHMIR VIOLENCE

01] 14-10-2011: Constable Sajjad Ahmad shot dead at Hazratbal, Srinagar.

02] 11-12-2011: SgCt Gulzar Ahmad killed in firing at Zaldagar, Srinagar.

03] 24-12-2011: NC worker Bashir Ahmad Dar shot dead in Batmaloo, Srinagar.

04] 18-02-2012: NC worker Gh Hassan Dar shot dead at Hajan, Bandipore.

05] 09-03-2012: Constable Afroz Ahmad injured in firing at Saraibala, Srinagar.

06] 17-03-2012: Peer Jalaluddin injured in firing at Batmaloo, Srinagar.

07] 30-03-2012: NC Hlq President Mohiuddin Bhat shot dead at Pinglish, Tral

08] 20-04-2012: ASI Sukhpal Singh shot dead at Safakadal, Srinagar.

09] 17-05-2012: RDX-laden abandoned car seized at Nowgam, Srinagar.

10] 30-05-2012: 7 CRPF men injured in firing at Victory Crossing Khanyar

11] 15-06-2012: NC Blk President Ab Rehman Ganai shot dead at Nattipora, Sgr.

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Police-militant nexus surfaces in Srinagar shootouts

4 cops, 3 civilians arrested in firing on ex-militant Shabnam

Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

SRINAGAR, Jun 16: Special Operations Group (SOG) of District Police Srinagar has unearthed a nexus between Police and Hizbul Mujahideen. At least six Police personnel and three civilians have been identified so far in the June 7^th attack on Hizbul Mujahideen’s released militant, Ghulam Hassan Mir alias Shabnam, and investigation is underway to see if the dangerously operating network was involved in any other subversive incident.

Authoritative sources disclosed to Early Times that during investigation of some recent incidents of firing and grenade attacks in the summer capital, Srinagar District Police hit upon a network of Police personnel and militants of Hizbul Mujahideen operating in at least three districts of the Valley. Making use of human intelligence as well as technology, including interception of cellphones, Police gathered enough evidence, necessitating detention and sustained interrogation of a number of Police personnel and civilians.

Initially, the investigation was supervised by SSP Srinagar, Syed Ashiq Hussain Bukhari, and SP CI Kashmir, Sheikh Junaid Mehmood. Later, a special investigation team of Special Component of Srinagar District Police (SOG Srinagar) and some other officials from the Executive Police, carried out the process. It was during this process of investigation that the SIT learned how some constables of CID, in coordination with at least three civilians, had helped Hizbul Mujahideen in planning and executing an attack on one Ghulam Hassan Mir alias Shabnam of Tral late in the evening on June 7^th.

A former militant of Hizbul Mujahideen, Shabnam sustained gunshot injuries in the firing on him that happened outside his hosiery shop and residence at Sadarbal, Hazratbal. A civilian, identified as Abdul Rashid of Nayidkhai, Sumbal, had also sustained minor injuries in the same shootout. Shabnam has been recuperating at SKIMS after a surgery. He had been arrested by SOG Srinagar in the year 2006 and released in 2007. Few years back, he shifted his residence to Sadarbal, near Hazratbal, and set up a hosiery shop there.

Sources said that during the last four days of the investigation, SIT gathered substantial evidences of the involvement of at least six Police personnel---four from CID and two from District Police---in the attack on Shabnam. Four of them have been detained and they were reportedly under custodial interrogation to identify other members of the network besides their involvement in other incidents of firing and grenade throwing, if any. Sources said that two CID personnel, posted for several years in Special Branch (SB) Srinagar, Kashmir, namely Mohammad Abbas and Mohammad Illyas of Tral area, spilled the beans during question and their disclosures led to the arrest of two more constables.

According to these well-placed sources, four Police and CID personnel had been arrested and raids were being conducted in search of two more CID personnel, who had reportedly gone underground immediately after the detention of two of their colleagues. Among the three civilians, detained for questioning but still not formally booked, one happens to a resident of Tral area, in the south Kashmir district of Pulwama.

Even as almost all the senior and middle ranking Police officials either refused to comment or ignored repeated telephonic calls from this newspaper, IGP Kashmir, S M Sahai, confirmed that two CID personnel and a District Police constable, who too was posted in CID until March this year, had been arrested and their involvement in the firing on Shabnam had been established. IGP CID, Dr B Srinivas, was among the senior Police officials who did not respond to repeated telephonic calls. Mr Sahai said that the breakthrough had been achieved but the militant of Hizbul Mujahideen, who fired upon Shabnam, was still at large. He said that the investigation was in progress and sharing details with media could hamper the process.

A press release from Zonal Police Headquarters, Kashmir, today said that three constables had been taken into custody. “During the course of investigation in case FIR No: 48/2012 under section 10,13,18 unlawful prevention activities Act and section 3 of Police Enhanced penalties ordinance of Police Station Shergari, it surfaced that a Police constable was also involved and was in touch with anti- national elements”, said the release without elaboration.

“Further investigation revealed that two more constables of Jammu and

Kashmir Police are also involved in such activities. These three constables

have been taken into custody and their conduct is being  scrutinized” it concluded.

Srinagar Police has been on tenterhooks in the wake of a number of subversive incidents since October 14^th, 2011, when constable Sajjad Ahmad was gunned down at Hazratbal. Suspected militants later fired upon the escort and PSOs of senior National Conference leader and Minister for Law and Rural Development, Ali Mohammad Sagar, killing his PSO Gulzar Ahmad, outside the Minister’s ancestral house at Zaldagar, Nawab Bazar, on December 11^th, 2011. NC worker Bashir Ahmad Dar was later shot dead near Rekka Chowk, Batmaloo, on December 24^th, 2011.

In two incidents of suspected militant firing on March 9^th and 17^th respectively, PSO of then Director Information Farooq Reenzu, Constable Afroz Ahmad Khan, and civilian Peer Jalal-ud-din were left injured at Sarai Bala and Batmaloo.

On April 20^th, Assistant Sub Inspector of Police Sukhpal Singh was shot dead by suspected militants near Safakadal. On May 30^th, seven CRPF men were injured in a militant strike at Victory Crossing in Khanyar locality of Srinagar. NC’s Block President, Abdul Rehman Ganai, was shot dead at Nattipora in broad daylight on June 15^th.

END