Against the backdrop of the high voter turnout during the first phase of polling on November 17, election authorities in the state are gearing up by taking slew of measures for successful completion of remaining six phases, which will see 18 more districts going to the hustings.
Security forces on Saturday killed three terrorists, including two who had allegedly snatched rifles from policemen in Kulgam district earlier this week, in separate operations in Shopian and Sopore areas of Kashmir valley. Acting on specific information, security forces on Friday night launched a search operation in Lehend-Habdipora area of the Shopian district, 52 kms from Srinagar, officials said.
The militants attacked the Pulwama police station with grenades and automatic gunfire in the early hours of Thursday morning.
At least two security personnel, including a Special Police Officer, were injured on Wednesday evening when terrorists opened fire on security forces, triggering a gunbattle, at a village in Kulgam district of south Kashmir, official sources said.
Militants shot at and killed a police constable and wounded another person in south Kashmir's Kulgam district on Saturday morning.
Kashmiri Pandit employees on Monday threatened to appeal to international human rights organisations for asylum if the central government failed to relocate them from the Valley in the wake of attacks on minorities.
Anxious to return home after the spate of killings targeting minorities, non-locals and other civilians in the Valley, about 50 migrant labourers, many of them from Bihar, arrived at the Nowgam railway station late on Monday night from nearby Budgam district where they worked in brick kilns.
In the first attack of its kind, militants on Monday attacked two armed cops of the Jammu and Kashmir police with sharp edged weapons in the Yaripora village of south Kashmir's Kulgam district and made good their escape along with the automatic weapons of the policemen.
'Whether she is in power or not, she always makes it a point to visit us. This is her best quality as a leader.'
The incoming facility on prepaid connections has also been restored, but the outgoing calls are barred.
In the second encounter within two days in south Kashmir, one terrorist was killed and three security men injured in an ongoing gun battle in the Tangmarg village of south Kashmir's Kulgam district on Wednesday evening.
Terrorists had laid an ambush and fired indiscriminately when the troops approached the village.
The army on Friday ordered an internal probe into allegations that its soldiers had abducted and raped a woman in Kulgam district, even as Chief Minister Omar Abdullah promised strict action against the guilty.
Three persons, including two women, were killed in two separate strikes by militants in south Kashmir on Sunday night. A senior police officer said four militants barged into the house of Mohammad Hussain Gorsi in the Nanmarg forest area of Damhal Hanjipora in south Kashmir's Kulgam district and fired indiscriminately, killing his 40-year old wife and 19-year daughter on the spot. Gorsi managed to escape unhurt.
After four days of violence and deaths, Kashmir was today relatively incident-free even as more violence-hit areas were brought under curfew in South Kashmir where 3 youths were killed in alleged CRPF firing.
The encounter broke out after terrorists hiding in a house opened indiscriminate fire on a joint search party of police and security forces at Khodwani, 70 km from Srinagar, police said.
The terrorist was shot dead after he opened fire while trying to escape.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration has neither accepted nor rejected the demand but the protest had to be suspended as stopping of salaries is 'choking us financially', protesters affiliated to the All Migrant (Displaced) Employees Association Kashmir (AMEAK) said.
Besides the national capital, polling will be held Saturday in 14 seats in Uttar Pradesh, all 10 seats of Haryana, eight seats each in Bihar and West Bengal, six seats in Odisha, four seats in Jharkhand and one seat in Jammu and Kashmir. Simultaneously, polling will be held for 42 assembly constituencies in Odisha.
A Pakistani militant belonging to the Lashkar-e-Tayiba outfit was among three killed in two separate encounters on Sunday in Jammu and Kashmir, where three militants remain holed up in a mosque.
The deceased received one gun shot and his body was taken to the hospital for post-mortem.
Most of these new recruits came from Pulwama, Shopian and Kulgam districts in South Kashmir, which had become the hub of tech-savvy, young militants.
No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack.
Three of the five civilians held hostage by militants came out safely on Monday evening even as security forces continued the siege around the mosque in south Kashmir's Palnu village, 80 km from Srinagar in Kulgam district.
Omar Abdullah said that if The Kashmir Files was a commercial movie, no one has an issue, but if the film makers claim that it is based on reality, then the facts are the other way round.
Dar said he can't wait to join the Mumbai Indians family.
3 terrorists -- two from the Lashkar-e-Tayiba and one from the Hizbul Mujahideen -- were arrested over the past three days.
A huge cache of arms and ammunition, which includes an AK-47 rifle, magazines, grenades, RPG-7 rocket launcher, was recovered from the encounter site, he said.
According to the order, Singh was awarded Jammu and Kashmir's highest police award in 2018.
A grenade was lobbed by a youth at an election rally being addressed by a People's Democratic Party candidate in Noorabad Assembly seat of south Kashmir's Kulgam district.
The boy, identified as Nihan Yawar, a resident of neighbouring Kulgam district, was travelling with his father for some personal work when he was hit by bullets fired by the terrorist at Padshahi Bagh bridge in Anantnag's Bijbehara area.
Inspector Masroor Ahmad Wani was playing cricket with local boys at the Eidgah ground when he was shot by terrorists, the officials said.
In a searing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government, Sena leader and MP Sanjay Raut also said that in view of Kashmiri Pandits once again fleeing from the Valley, 'Kashmir Files 2' should be made to show who is responsible for their current plight.
Areas falling under the jurisdiction of 11 police stations Srinagar were also placed under curfew.
The army has quietly moved an entire brigade into south Kashmir to clear it of militants and protesters.
In the last three years, the Union Territory administration has invoked 311 (2)(c) of the Constitution to sack more than 50 employees, who were allegedly operating in shadows within the government and drawing a salary from the public exchequer, however, they were helping Pakistani terror outfits, providing logistics to terrorists, propagating terrorists' ideology, raising terror finances and furthering secessionist agenda, officials said.
A pall of gloom descended on the Harmain area of Shopian as people bid final adieu to Lieutenant Umer Fayaz, the army soldier who found killed on Wednesday. Fayaz was abducted by five to six terrorists from his relative's house in south Kashmir's Shopian on Tuesday night. His bullet riddled body was found on Wednesday morning, a police official said. The officer, who was commissioned in the army in December last year, had come to Kulgam district on leave for attending a wedding in his family.
Four army men, including a Major, and an equal number of militants were on Tuesday killed while eight other security personnel and a civilian were injured in two separate encounters in Kashmir, officials said.
Security agencies braced for a march called by separatists on Monday.
The Resistance Front (TRF), which is believed to be a shadow group of LeT, claimed responsibility for the killings. IGP (Kashmir) Kumar said police have seized a vehicle used in the attack and that such killings were being executed at the behest of Pakistan.
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