Militants responsible for the killing of non-local fruit dealer and truck driver in south Kashmir’s Shopian district have been identified and they will be brought to justice, J&K Police Chief Dilbagh Singh on Thursday.
“Investigations are on the right path. We have identified the militants behind the attacks and their masterminds. Multiple police teams and other security agencies are working in coordination to bring the perpetrators to justice,” the DGP said.
“What happened in Shopian is very sad and unfortunate. Now militants are targeting those who visit Kashmir for business purposes. This will certainly affect the local fruit growers,” he said.
Singh said police has already killed the militant who had attacked a fruit grower in north Kashmir’s Sopore town. “There are several other militants who have been identified and they will also be neutralized,” he said.
Singh said that police had review meetings with Army and paramilitary officers and they have taken various steps to ensure safe and secure atmosphere for the local fruit dealers.
“We have deployed additional troops in and around orchards and have asked transporters not to go into interiors. In fact, we have created some designated points for these transporters where they could load fruits for onward journey,” he said.
Singh said the restrictions will continue in some “sensitive areas” of Kashmir. “Women protesters detained in Srinagar carried provocative placards. Those women protesters didn’t respect the law and we took action,” he said.
Jammu and Kashmir is currently under President's rule. The state Assembly was dissolved on November 2018 after the ruling coalition between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the People's Democratic Party (PDP) fell apart in June 2018.
The Valley has remained under lockdown for over two months since the abrogation of the Article 370 by the BJP-led Centre and a sweeping crackdown on not just militants but even mainstream parties like National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party with former chief ministers Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti under detention.
An array of political leaders, businessmen, lawyers, activists and others have also been confined to Centaur Hotel on the banks of Dal Lake which has been declared as a sub-jail by the state administration. On Thursday, four leaders including former lawmakers were released from the sub jail.
The government has not made any announcement yet on the charges under which the mainstream leaders and others have been arrested, and whether and when they will be released, although the Thursday’s release seems to pave way for restoration of political process in the state.
Relatives of Omar and Mehbooba recently were allowed to meet the leaders at Hari Niwas Palace and a guest house at Cheshma Shahi where the two leaders are being held respectively. Leaders of NC also met the party chief Dr Farooq Abdullah who has been held under the Public Safety Act.
Earlier, the daughter of Mehbooba, Iltija Mufti, had written to the home minister that she was fearing for her life and that she was being denied permission to meet her mother who she said has been confined to ‘one room’. She however later met her mother and has been lately sending out tweets from her mother’s account.