Srinagar: Contradicting the Centre’s claim that a safe environment has been created for minorities in the Kashmir Valley, separatist militants on Tuesday shot at and critically injured a Kashmiri Pandit brother duo in their family apple orchard in southern Shopian district.
The injured siblings were evacuated to hospital, where one of them, Sunil Kumar, was declared dead. The other, identified as Pitambar Nath alias Pintu Kumar, is being treated at a military hospital in Srinagar.
The police said two sons of Kashmiri Pandit resident Arjun Nath were fired upon by terrorists at an apple orchard in Chotigam area early Tuesday. The Kashmir zone police tweeted: “Terrorists fired upon civilians in an apple orchard in Chotipora area of Shopian. One person died and one injured. Both belong to minority community. Injured person has been shifted to hospital. Area cordoned off. Further details shall follow.”
The police and local sources said the siblings were working in their apple orchard when a group of gunmen surfaced. They were asked to disclose their names, and when they did a shower of bullets from an AK-47 pierced their bodies. The sources said Sunil Kumar died on the spot while his brother was lying in a pool of blood as a group of villagers rushed to the spot. The assailants had fled after committing the crime.
The sources said Arjun Nath and his family chose to stay put when a vast majority of Kashmiri Pandits fled their hearth and home in the Valley to escape violence after the separatist campaign burst into a major insurgency in 1989-90 and were living peacefully with their Muslim neighbours.
This is the second such attack on a minority community in the last 24 hours in the Valley. On Monday evening, suspected militants exploded a hand grenade at Gopalpora in Chadoora area of central district of Budgam, injuring one Karan Kumar Singh. He was admitted to a Srinagar hospital where his condition is stated to be “stable”.
J&K lieutenant-governor Manoj Sinha said he was distressed to learn about the attack on the brother duo in Shopian. He tweeted: “Pained beyond words on despicable terror attack on civilians in Shopian. My thoughts are with the family of Sunil Kumar. Praying for speedy recovery of injured.” He said that the attack deserved strongest condemnation from everyone and promised: “Terrorists responsible for barbaric act will not be spared”.
Mr Sinha visited the Army’s 92 Base Hospital in Srinagar to enquire about the health of the injured Pandit. In another tweet, he said: “Visited the Army Hospital in Srinagar to inquire about the health of Sh. Pitambar Nath Pandit, who was injured in Shopian terror attack. I pray for his speedy recovery”.
Former chief minister and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti also took to Twitter to condemn the attack. She said: “Terribly sorry to hear about the targeted killing in Shopian. Condolences to the deceased’s family”. She accused the Central government of turning a blind eye on such unabated incidents. She said: “GOI continues to behave like an ostrich with its head buried deep under the sand. Every resident of J&K has become cannon fodder in Delhi’s quest for ‘manufactured normalcy’.”
National Conference leader and former chief minister Omar Abdullah tweeted: “Terribly sad news from South Kashmir today. An accident & a militant attack have left a trail of death & suffering. I condemn the militant attack in Shopian unequivocally in which Sunil Kumar was killed & Pinto Kumar injured. My condolences to the family.”
These incidents are reminiscent of a series of such and similar attacks carried out by suspected militants in Srinagar and some other parts of the Kashmir Valley in September-October last year and also earlier this year, leaving several people including seasonal labourers -- both Hindus and Muslims -- from different parts of India dead or injured.
...