CRPF officer, two militants killed in Kashmir

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.