16 Hindus massacred in Doda
Mukhtar Ahmed in Srinagar
Sixteen Hindus were massacred in Jammu on
Tuesday when militants opened indiscriminate fire
in two villages near Kishtawar in Doda
district.
Curfew has been clamped down on
Kishtwar and Bhaderwah towns. The police and security
forces in the entire Jammu are on maximum alert.
Sources said a group of heavily armed militants
entered three houses at village Chana
in Horana, 25 kms from Kishtawar, at around 1030 hours, and
sprayed bullets on inmates. Eight people, including two women, died on the spot.
The villagers were identified as Munshi Ram, his wife Shakuntala
Devi, daughter Babli Devi, Duni Chand, Girdhari Lal, Kailash Kumar,
Bobby Chand and Bharat Bhushan.
Three members of Duni Chand's
family -- Pushpa Devi, Narain
Das and Kartar Chand -- sustained injuries. They have been airlifted to the Jammu medical college hospital. Their
condition is critical.
The same group of militants moved to
Sarana, 10 kilometres away, where at around
1430 hours they sprayed bullets on another
eight people. Two people were injured.
Minister of State for Home Mushtaq Ahmed Lone and Food Minister Bashir Ahmed Kitchloo, who along with senior police officers airdashed to the scene, announced an ex-gratia compensation of Rs 100,000 to the next of kin of each killed. They said a government job would be provided for a kin under the compassionate appointment rules.
The ministers said the incident once again highlighted the evil
designs of militants and their mentors from
across the border. They called upon the locals to maintain peace
and unity in the area.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the massacre
which comes on the heels of the killing of four villagers in Machala.
State Director General of Police Gurbachan Jagat told Rediff On The NeT that a combined operation has been mounted by the army and the special task force to track down the
killers. He said the massacre was the handiwork of
Hizbul Mujaheedin and Lashkar-e Toiba, both pro-Pakistan outfits.
Chief Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah expressed deep anguish and shock
over the incident. On being conveyed the
news, the chief minister, who is holidaying in London,
said 'the brutal hands of terrorism have again struck and committed yet another crime against
humanity.'
"The merchants of death and destruction have not even spared women. The cold blooded murder of innocent villagers by lunatic killers, patronised from across the border, only demonstrate their scant
regard for human values," his message ran.
He vowed that there would be no let up in the fight against terrorism and expressed confidence that the forces
would nab the killers soon.
Meanwhile, at Vilgam in Kupwara district, two militants and two armymen were killed and three jawans seriously wounded in a fierce encounter.
In another incident at Kanhama, a Border Security Force inspector and a militant were killed in a
fierce clash. One house was gutted.
At Shaheed Gunj, militants lobbed a grenade into a police
station. A few policemen were injured.
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