A Kashmiri Pandit was shot dead by suspected militants in the Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday.
The civilian identified as Puran Krishan Bhat was attacked near his home in the Chowdhary Gund area of the south Kashmir district, said the police. The security personnel have cordoned off the area and are looking for the suspected militants.
Deputy Inspector General of Police Sujit Kumar said that the Kashmir Freedom Fighters, a militant outfit, claimed responsibility for Saturday’s attack, reported ANI. “We won’t say anything for sure about it, yet,” Kumar told the news agency.
He also said that if the attack took place in the presence of the guard who was deployed there, action will be taken against him and all the officers who look over the area.
The latest killing is an addition to a spate of targeted attacks against Kashmiri Pandits and migrant workers that have taken place in the union territory.
On August 16, militants had killed a Kashmiri Pandit resident and injured another in the Shopian district. The person who died was identified as Sunil Kumar and the one who was injured was Pintu Kumar. The attack had come a day after another civilian died in a grenade attack by militants in the Budgam district.
On May 12, Rahul Bhat, a Kashmiri Pandit government employee, was killed after suspected militants barged into his office in Budgam district. His killing had led to massive protests by Kashmiri Pandits in many parts of the Union Territory. Two weeks later, militants had shot dead Amreen Bhat, a Kashmiri Pandit actor, in Chadoora town of Budgam. The attack had also injured her ten-year-old nephew who sustained bullet injuries.
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