A day after low turnout polling was conducted in south Kashmir, three militants of Jaish-e-Muhammad outfit were killed in a fierce gun battle on Friday in Karewa Manloo village of hilly district Shopian. A polling officer died and five others were wounded in the same area on polling day that was marked by sporadic violence.
Police sources said that police and security forces cordoned off Karewa Manloo area on Friday following a report that a group of militants was hiding in the residential area.Following the cordon, gunshots were initially heard in the area and later security forces zeroed in on a residential house where militants were hiding.One of the militants attempted to break the cordon by engaging security forces but he was shot dead in retaliation. The slain militant was identified as Muhammad Asif Wani, a local resident.
The security forces later pounded the hideout with mortars and razed it to cinders. Two other militants are believed to have died. For several hours in the afternoon, there was no firing from the militants’ side.A police official said that the exact number of militants killed in the encounter would be established after the bodies were retrieved from the debris.SP Shopian said that three militants including a foreigner are believed to have been killed.