2 militants killed in J&K gun battle

Two suspected militants were on Tuesday killed and two CRPF jawans were wounded in a brief encounter along the Srinagar-Jammu highway at Pampore, about 12-km from here. Two civilians, including a woman, were also injured in the exchange of gunfire.

Officials said that the clash took place at Sempora on the outskirts of Jammu and Kashmir’s summer capital Srinagar after some car-borne men opened fire at a local police’s counterinsurgency Special Operations Group (SoG) being assisted by the CRPF.

The naka party at a makeshift drop gate signalled the vehicle to stop but ignoring the officers it halted at a distance opened indiscriminate fire at the patrolling unit, injured two jawans.

“Both the gunmen were killed in the ensuing brief encounter with the security forces,” officials claimed adding that two civilians, including a woman identified as Ayesha, were caught in the crossfire and sustained bullet wounds.

The officials also claimed that they had prior information about militants travelling in a pick-up van from southern Anantnag to Srinagar would pass through the area and quickly laid a naka for them at Sempora, Pampore.