Militant killed in Shopian encounter

An unidentified militant was killed in an encounter in Arshipora of Shopian district of southern Kashmir, where armed forces, acting on a specific tip-off regarding the presence of militants, had launched a cordon and search operation on Friday, police said.

The operation was going on as the armed forces suspected the presence of at least two more militants in the area.

“One terrorist eliminated, one AK rifle recovered and joint operation is in progress,” said a Srinagar-based defence spokesperson.


The operation was started jointly by the J&K Police, Army’s 44 RR and Central Reserve Police Force personnel. The police said the militants turned down the offer of surrender and opened fire at the government forces.

Earlier, director general of J&K Police Dilbag Singh had told reporters in Kulgam of southern Kashmir that Covid-19 pandemic has affected anti-militancy operations across the Union Territory. He said several armed forces personnel have tested positive for the virus while others are busy implementing lockdown, thus impacting the overall operations.

“The Covid-19 pandemic has affected anti-militancy operations to some extent. But it is not like we are leaving areas free for militants to roam around,” Singh told media persons.

The police chief expressed concern over the recruitment of locals into the militant ranks and said, “Police have been working hard to prevent misguided youth from going astray and want them to return to the mainstream. In Kulgam, a group of youth who were about to join militancy were brought back and united with their families.”

He blamed militant organisations such as the Jaish-e-Muhammad, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Al Badr for running a sustained campaign to recruit local youths. “Unfortunately, recruitment is still taking place, but the graph is very less compared to previous years,” said Singh.