Anantnag: Five labourers who were shot dead in Katrasoo village of Kulgam late on Tuesday evening were packing to leave for their hometown West Bengal on Wednesday.
At the accommodation where they were putting up in the south Kashmir district, apples are still strewn on the floor along with their belongings. Soon after their killing, police rummaged through their belongings to find their identities.
“They worked in apple orchards and paddy fields. Now that they had earned some money, they were about to go back home. Guess it was not to be,” a police source told Kashmir Reader.
While the people in the village maintain silence and are unwilling to speak about the incident with strangers but according to police the labourers were dragged out of their rented accommodation and taken to a nearby secluded place where they were shot at.
“Five of them died on spot while one, grievously injured, ran back to his room from where he was rescued and taken to a hospital in Srinagar for treatment,” a senior police official from Kulgam said.
He said that a case has been registered and investigation has been taken up.
“We are arranging for the bodies to be sent back to their homes.”
Local sources told Kashmir Reader that the laborers had recently come back to Kashmir after the exodus of non-locals from Kashmir in the run up to abrogation of article 370.
Following the August 5 “abrogation” militants had issued threat posters, asking all non-locals to leave Kashmir valley immediately.
“Even if he is an imam of a Masjid, do not allow them to live here,” one of the posters had read.
After Tuesday’s killing, many non-locals who had recently returned to the valley are now fleeing. Sources in different parts of south Kashmir told Kashmir Reader that many non-locals could be seen waiting for rides, with their bags and baggage.
The attacks on non-locals started on October 4 in Sindoo, Shirmal area of Shopian district where a truck driver from Alwar, Rajasthan was killed. Since, 11 people have been killed and three others have been injured in six different incidents in all four districts of South Kashmir.
Timeline:
October 4: A truck driver from Alwar, Rajasthan was shot dead in Sindoo Shirmal area of Shopian district.
October 16: A brick kiln worker from Bihar was shot at and killed in Nehama village of Kakapora in Pulwama district.
October 16: A truck driver from Punjab was killed and another was injured, as unidentified gunmen opened fire at them, here in Trenz village of Shopian district. Their truck was set ablaze.
October 23: Two truck drivers from Alwar, Rajasthan were killed and another one was injured after suspected militants shot at them in Zainapora area of Shopian district. Three trucks were also set ablaze.
October 28: A truck driver from Katra in Jammu was shot at and killed in Kanelwan area in Bijbehara of Anantnag district.
October 29: Five laborers from West Bengal killed in Katrasoo area of Kulgam district.

Suhail A Shah