Saturday, December 21


Asif Ahmad Rather, an agriculture graduate, was abducted from his home; his mother has made an emotional appeal for his release in a video.


Masked terrorists barged into the house of a policeman in the Tral area of South Kashmir on Wednesday night and kidnapped his son Asif Ahmad Rather, an agriculture graduate.

In another incident, two terrorists were killed in a gunfight between security forces and terrorists that broke out on Thursday morning in the Hajin area of North Kashmir.

Reports said armed terrorists barged into the house of Rafiq Ahmad Rather, posted at the CID headquarters in Srinagar, and abducted his son from the Pinglish area of Tral in Pulwama district.

Police confirmed that some unidentified gunmen abducted the youth but his whereabouts were not known. In a passionate appeal in a video, mother of the abducted youth, Hameeda Begum, sought his release.

Meanwhile, two terrorists were killed in a gunfight between security forces and terrorists that broke out on Thursday morning in the Hajin area of North Kashmir. The police had earlier said one terrorist had been killed but during a search of the area found the body of another terrorist.

Security forces launched a cordon and search operation (CASO) following specific information about the presence of terrorists in the area. As the forces reached the suspected spot, the hiding terrorists indiscriminately opened fire triggering an encounter.

Bandipura DC Shahid Iqbal Chaudhary escaped an attack at him in the area on Wednesday evening. Miscreants attacked his cavalcade at Nadihal, after stone pelting at SK Bala, Chaudhary said. The official car in which the DC was travelling was badly damaged.

Earlier on Wednesday, while addressing a gathering in the terror-torn Hajin, Chaudhary said peace was prerequisite for development. “Our team will put extra efforts to deliver well,” he added.

Hajin has become a virtual haven for Pakistani terrorists who have for the past few months been inflicting brutality on residents of the area. At least eight persons in the area were beheaded by terrorists on the suspicion of being informers of the police. Terrorists have been threatening residents of the area with dire consequences if anyone informed the police about their presence.

Meanwhile, the service rifle of a constable has gone missing in Poonch district of Jammu. An inquiry has been ordered and a special investigation team formed to recover the missing rifle, said Senior Superintendent of Police Rajiv Pandey.

Terrorists after killing four policemen in Shopian of South Kashmir on Wednesday had fled with their automatic rifles.