The security forces on Tuesday shot dead most-wanted lashkar-e-Tayyeba (leT) commander Abu Dujana, along with his local associate Arif lelhari, during an operation in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district. The killings triggered protests in several parts of the Valley forcing the authorities to shut down educational institutions. A protester was killed in action to quell protests in Kakapora area of South Kashmir.
Dujana, 26, who is believed to be a resident of Gilgit-Baltistan area in Pakistan, was involved in a number of attacks on security forces during his six-year stay in Kashmir.
Even as the security forces referred to him as the leT chief, sources said he had recently closed ranks with the outfit and joined al-Qaeda affiliate Ansar Guzawat-ul-Hind led by former Hizbul Mujahideen commander Zakir Musa.
Sources said Dujana had married a local woman around seven months ago and his meetings with her brought him under the security radar that eventually led to his death. Sources said the house he was zeroed in at, belonged to his in-laws.
The anti-militancy operation was launched jointly by Army, police and CRPF in the wee hours at Hakripora Pulwama, nearly 25 km from Srinagar, after authentic input about Dujana’s presence in the area. Sources said that before the crack of dawn, at about 4 am, the security forces encircled a cluster of houses. It took the security forces around two hours to ensure evacuation of all civilians from the cordoned area. “There was a brief encounter that resulted in the death of two terrorists,” sources said.
General Officer Commanding of XV Corps lt Gen JS Sandhu said that the two terrorists initially disallowed the civilians to leave the area. “We spoke to the house owner and learnt that terrorists were not allowing the members of the family to come out. After couple of hours all the family members came out. That is the time when we launched the operation at around 8 am and within couple of hours two terrorists were killed,” Sandhu told reporters.
State police chief Shesh Paul Vaid described Dujana’s killing as a “huge success”.
Police said Dujana had masterminded many suicide attacks on security forces along the Srinagar-Anantnag National Highway including one of the fiercest attacks on a CRPF convoy last year at Pampore that left eight personnel dead and 19 injured.
Inspector General of Police (Kashmir range), Muneer Khan said Dujana had become a ‘nuisance’ in the area. “He (Dujana) had become eyesore for everyone specially the girls of the area. The girls should relax now as no such person is there to harass them,” Khan said.
The house, where Dujana was found, has been blasted to smithereens.
Soon after the encounter began in the area, hundreds of people from the adjacent areas tried to march towards the encounter site to help the terrorists escape. Intense clashes broke out between the protesters and security forces. During the clashes, security forces fired automatic weapons that led to death of a civilian Firdous Ahmed. Around a dozen protesters were injured in the clashes.
Dujana was the longest surviving foreign terrorist in Kashmir, who gave slip to the security forces at least half a dozen times this year. He was a known master of disguise.
The security forces had categorised him under A-plus-plus rank carrying a reward of Rs 12.50 lakh on his head.
The Army, however, said that Dujana was not a tough fighter. “Dujana was not involved in too many operations. He was more involved in coercion and not many in terms of terrorist acts. Voh yahan aiyyashi kar raha tha bas (he was only enjoying here). But largely he was a nuisance,” Sandhu said adding his killing has affected the leadership of the lashkar outfit.
After sneaking into the Valley in 2011, Dujana was in North Kashmir region for two years before he shifted his base to the southern parts. His name surfaced for the first time during NIA’s investigations into August 2015 attack on a BSF convoy in Udhampur. He became the lashkar chief after the killing of dreaded lashkar commander Abu Qasim who was killed in Kulgam in 2015 fall.
Of late, sources said, Dujana had developed differences with leT leadership and after being disarmed by his own outfit, he had joined a breakaway Hizbul group led by Zakir Musa. Musa was recently declared as Kashmir chief of an al-Qaeda affiliate, which was resented by Hizbul and separatist Hurriyat Conference.
Police said Dujana had married a girl seven months back and was killed in the house of his in-laws on Tuesday morning, where he had reportedly arrived on Monday.
Meanwhile, clashes erupted in several parts of Srinagar, South and North Kashmir after news of Dujana’s death circulated.
The students staged protests and clashed with police and paramilitaries. In view of the protests, the authorities announced to shut down educational institutions. The separatist groups called for a shutdown against the killings on Wednesday. The authorities have decided to impose restrictions.