A CRPF commandant and two militants were killed in a gunfight in the Kashmir Valley yesterday despite a strict curfew in view of attack threats on India’s Independence Day.
Pramod Kumar, commandant of the 49 Battalion of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), was killed after four militants hurled a grenade and opened fire at a security patrol in an old city area.
Nine paramilitary troopers were also injured in the attack. They have been shifted to a hospital.
Police said the attackers entered a house in Nowhatta — close to the historic Jamia Masjid, the main mosque in Srinagar. “Two of the militants were gunned down and the other two are still firing from the house,” a police officer told IANS.
Much of Srinagar has been under curfew continuously almost for five weeks since the killing of a rebel commander on July 8 sparked widespread protests, leaving 56 people dead and thousands injured.
Security personnel secure the area during an encounter with militants, who attacked security patrol in Srinagar, killing a CRPF commandant and injuring nine paramilitary troopers and a local policeman.