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Former Union minister survives ambush in Anantnag

Mukhtar Ahmad in Srinagar

Former Union minister of state for home Mohammad Maqbool Dar, the Janata Dal (United) candidate for the Anantnag parliamentary constituency, escaped unhurt in a militant ambush at Shahjimarg in Pulwama district late this afternoon.

In another incident, militants shot dead a prominent state Congress politician, Ghulam Hassan Khwaja, at Mamoosa Pattan in northern Baramulla district this morning.

Police said gunmen entered a house belonging to a close relative of Khwaja and shot him from close range. Khwaja died on the spot.

Police in Srinagar said a group of heavily armed militants fired indiscriminately on Dar's motorcade and hurled grenades as soon as he neared Shahjimarg. A Central Reserve Police Force trooper was injured in the firing. But the other guards escorting the former minister immediately took up position and returned the fire while flashing a message for help.

Senior district police and security force officers rushed to the spot and Dar was escorted back to Pulwama. He was on his way to address an election meeting at a nearby village.

The attack came just three days after the murder of the Bharatiya Janata Party's candidate in Anantnag, Ghulam Hyder Noorani. The Election Commission has given the BJP seven days to name a replacement.

In all, there are 17 candidates in the fray in Anantnag, including former Union home minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Congressman Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed, Ali Mohammad Naik of the National Conference, and the CPI-M's Mohammad Youssuf Tarigami.

Authorities in the state capital said they have issued strict instructions to all the candidates to adhere strictly to security norms and not visit any place without prior intimation to the state police. More troops have also been rushed to the two constituencies of Anantnag and Baramulla.

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