Director General of Jammu and Kashmir Police S P Vaid and other senior officers carrying the coffin of DSP Mohammad Ayub Pandith during a wreath laying ceremony at District Police Lines in Srinagar. (FILE PHOTO)
One of the three militants killed in Tuesday’s encounter at Kashmir’s Budgam district was involved in the lynching of Deputy Superintendent Mohammad Ayub Pandit, the Jammu-Kashmir Police said on Wednesday. The militants were identified as Javed, Aqib and Dawood. It is, however, not clear which of the three was involved in last month’s lynching inside Jamia Masjid in Nowhatta area.
On June 23, the Deputy Superintendent of Jammu and Kashmir Police, who was in plain clothes, was stripped and brutally assaulted by a mob after some youth identified him near the entrance to the mosque.
“The masked youth who were beating the officer were shouting that he is a police officer, that they (police) are killing our youth, so they need to be taught a lesson. He was dragged inside the compound of the Jamia Masjid,’’ an eyewitness told The Indian Express.
Pandit then took out his service revolver and fired a few shots in self defence. Two persons injured in the firing. This irked the mob and they overpowered him and pinned him to the ground. Someone from the crowd used a iron rod to pierce his body. The crowd then dragged his body out of the mosque premises and dumped it in a drain.
On Monday, the J&K Police claimed they have cracked the case. Sources told The Indian Express that around 14-15 people were arrested for lynching Pandit. “We have almost managed to crack the case and arrested around 14-15 people. This is a high-profile case and we are investigating all aspects to build a water tight case,” said a senior police officer.
