Anantnag: A Pakistani and a local “hybrid” militant were among two people killed in a gunfight with government forces, here in Kulgam district of South Kashmir, the police have said.
Two policemen have also been injured in the gunfight.
The Pakistani militant has been identified by his code name Chacha, while the local was yet to be identified.
“Bodies have been retrieved and the identification is being done,” a police official said, “The injured policemen have been evacuated to the hospital.”
Inspector General of Police (IGP) Kashmir, Vijay Kumar, has confirmed that the two have been killed in the gunfight that took place in Khur-Batpora village of Kulgam district.
“One of them is a Pakistani and another one a hybrid militant,” Kumar has said. The term hybrid militant has been used quite frequently recently, for people who do not officially join militant ranks but work closely with the militants.
The term was put to question last year after the controversial Hyderpora encounter of Srinagar.
An operation, the police have said, was launched in the area Monday evening following inputs regarding presence of militants in the area.
“The hiding place of the militants was zeroed in on and they were asked to surrender. They however chose to open fire, leaving two policemen injured,” a senior police official from the area said.
He said that the fire was retaliated and both the militants were killed. “Arms, ammunition and some incriminating material was recovered from the possession of the militants,” the official said, adding that the bodies will be sent to North Kashmir for burial.
Authorities have refused to hand over bodies of slain militants to families or the general public (if the militants are foreigners) since April 2020 citing Covid protocol.
The militants are buried at an undisclosed location in North Kashmir’s Baramulla district.
Internet services were meanwhile snapped in parts of Kulgam district soon after the gunfight erupted in the district.

Suhail A Shah