Outrage as young Army officer shot dead by militants in J&K

Srinagar: A young Kashmiri Muslim Army officer was kidnapped and subsequently brutally killed by suspected militants in southern Kashmir’s Shopian district. The gory incident has evoked a nationwide outrage and a pledge from the government that “terrorism will be eradicated from the Valley at any cost”.

Umar Fayyaz Parray, working as a lieutenant in the Army, was on leave to attend a cousin’s wedding. His first leave after joining the Army in December last turned out to be his last and the wedding gathering he had joined turned into his funeral procession.

The bullet-riddled corpse of Parray, 22, was found in Harmain area on Wednesday morning, a night after the unarmed officer was abducted by masked gunmen from the wedding in Batpora village of neighbouring Kulgam district, in apparent bid to intimidate people and discourage the young from joining security forces.

The killing comes amid a spike in violence and street protests in Kashmir, where militants have repeatedly attacked security forces and banks in recent weeks.

The killing was a “watershed moment” in the Valley and local residents will turn the tide against “terrorism”, a senior Army official said.

Parray was posted with the Army’s 2 Rajputana Rifles in Akhnoor area close to the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu region. He had come to his native village Yaripora, also in Kulgam, a few days ago to attend the wedding.

At 8 pm on Tuesday, two masked gunmen appeared at his cousin’s home and took him along at gunpoint. They warned the family not to inform the police.

The Army on Wednesday paid tribute to its officer saying, “We salute the braveheart and stand by the bereaved family in this hour of tragedy”. It also pledged to “bring the perpetrators of this heinous act of terror to justice”.

Major General B.S. Raju, part of a force responsible for counter-terrorism operations in south Kashmir, has directed all its units in and around the area to launch a manhunt for the killers. The mortal remains of the slain officer were laid to rest with full military honours in the ancestral graveyard on Wednesday.

The J&K police has taken up investigations and said that the autopsy report showed marks on his body, which indicated that he had resisted the gunmen. The police also said that preliminary investigations and also the autopsy report suggest that he was fired at from a close range and the bullets had hit his head and stomach or chest.

Defence minister Arun Jaitley termed the abduction and killing “a dastardly act of cowardice”. In a series of tweets, he said that Parray was a role model for the youth of Kashmir. He on behalf of the government pledged to eliminate terrorism from the Valley and said Parray’s sacrifice will continue to inspire the youth.

Mr Jaitley also said, “Lt. Umar Fayyaz of 2RAJRIF was an exceptional sportsman, his sacrifice reiterates nation’s commitment to eliminate terrorism from the Valley. We share the grief of family of Lt. Umar Fayyaz & stand in solidarity. Lt. Umar Fayyaz will continue to inspire youth from the Valley.”

Chief minister Mehbooba Mufti condemned the killing and said that what was more painful to note was that the young officer had come home on vacation where he was attending the marriage of his cousin.

Main opposition National Conference (NC) also strongly condemned the killing and termed it “barbaric and unacceptable”. It asked the government to probe the circumstances that led to the tragic killing and asserted that violence had pushed J&K into grief and misery “as the state government’s failure to govern and the Central government’s failure to engage has created a dangerous political vacuum in Jammu and Kashmir.”