An off-duty policeman was killed when militants fired upon a former legislator and senior National Conference (NC) leader at Monghama village in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Wednesday. The NC leader was attending a wedding ceremony in the village. The attackers snatched service rifles of his personal security officer.
The attack took place two days after Hizbul Mujahideen militants shot dead three policemen in two separate attacks in capital Srinagar on Monday.
Sources said that militants opened fire on former legislator Mir’s car while he was attending the marriage ceremony of the daughter of his friend. A bullet grazed the nose of Mir’s PSO and hit another off-duty policeman Riyaz Ahmad Ganai, who was the bride’s cousin.
SP Pulwama Rayees Ahmad Bhat said the injured policeman later succumbed to his injuries. Mir escaped unhurt in the attack while his security official received minor bruises. The militants decamped with his service rifle.
Doctors at Pulwama hospital said that Riyaz had critical bullet injuries in his head, neck and chest. No militant group claimed responsibility for the attack.