SOURCE: TNN
The personal security officer (PSO) of a BJP worker was killed in a gunfight with terrorists who attacked the politician’s house in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district late Tuesday. A terrorist identified as Sajjad Ahmad was also killed in the fire exchange, police said. As many as five politicians were killed and one injured in terror attacks in July and August alone.
Confirming the attack, Kashmir Police tweeted that unidentified terrorists opened fire at BJP worker Ghulam Qadir’s house in Ganderbal’s Nunar area. PSO constable Altaf Hussain retaliated and shot down one of the attackers, but sustained critical injuries in the gun battle and succumbed on the way to a hospital. Qadir, however, escaped unhurt.
On July 8, three BJP workers — Waseem Bari, his father and brother — were killed in north Kashmir’s Bandipora district. On August 4, terrorists fired upon and critically injured BJP panch Arif Ahmad near his residence in Qazigund area of south Kashmir’s Kulgam district. Ahmad succumbed later. On August 6, BJP sarpanch Sajad Ahmad Khanday was shot dead by terrorists at Vessu in south Kashmir’s Qazigund.
On August 10, terrorists lobbed a hand grenade at the house of PDP panch Bupinder Singh in south Kashmir’s Tral, Pulwama, but Singh escaped unhurt. On August 11, BJP worker Abdul Hamid Nagar of central Kashmir’s Budgam was injured in a terror attack. Such attacks prompted authorities to shift panch members of various political parties to safer places, particularly in the Kashmiri Pandit clusters and in several hotels in Srinagar and Pahalgam in Anantnag. The move came after numerous BJP workers quit the party citing threat to their lives.
