Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu | Edited by Prabhash K Dutta
New Delhi, October 9, 2017 | UPDATED 15:38 IST
The security forces today killed the Jaish-e-Muhammad's Kashmir chief Khalid in an encounter. A former girlfriend of the commander of the Pakistan-based terror outfit is said to have helped security forces nail him.
"I want him dead," said a Kashmiri young woman in her early 20s as she walked into a senior Jammu and Kashmir Police officer's office one fine day last year. She wanted Jaish-e-Muhammad's operational commander Khalid killed.
"I will lead you to his tracks, you do the rest (in killing him)," she told the police officer.
After a brief encounter, Khalid was killed by the security forces today in north Kashmir. The woman was Khalid's girlfriend with several midnight trysts.
WHY SHE WANTED KHALID DEAD?
A year ago, the woman discovered that she was pregnant. She revealed this with great joy expecting Khalid to be as excited as she. But, his answer led to heartbreak. Khalid told her that he wanted nothing to do with either her or the child in the womb.
Scorned, she left with a cousin to Jalandhar in Punjab, where the unborn child was clandestinely aborted.
She came back enraged and determined to eliminate the man, who she believed, used her and led to her humiliation and death of her unborn child.
WOMAN ON MISSION
The woman's resolve for revenge made sure that Khalid's days were counted. There were several close calls with the near-kill escape of the terrorist with a long run of eight years.
Khalid had been the mastermind behind Jaish-e-Muhammad's deadly fidayeen attacks over the years. He had been sending in terrorist from North to South Kashmir.
Khalid kept the pot boiling for Pakistan in Kashmir Valley. He was behind a dozen attacks in North Kashmir mostly in Sopore, Baramulla, Handwara and Kupwara.
Khalid though retained a lover-boy image, and even at the time of his death had reportedly had three-four girlfriends.
TIP-OFFS AND FINAL ENCOUNTER
Some time back, the woman gave concrete information about Khalid's presence at a particular location. However, the police party reached the spot and began cordon operation only after he had left. On other occasions, he dropped in unexpectedly.
This time too, the Jammu and Kashmir police got information from sources close to the woman. A covert team waited for Khalid's entry in Sopore.
Khalid had come to meet an important contact. He fired indiscriminately but Special Operations Group (SOG) retaliated quickly injuring him. The firing lasted only four minutes.
Khalid managed to reach a residence, close to a government school in Ladoora. Cordoned and cornered, the Jaish-e-Muhammad chief in Kashmir was neutralised by the SOG, 3 battalions of CRPF (179, 177, 92) and 32 Rashtriya Rifles (RR).
With Khalid's killing, a reign of terror came to an end in Jammu and Kashmir.
