SRINAGAR – A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and his wife were shot dead by suspected militants in Indian-administered Kashmir yesterday, said officials, according to Anadolu.
BJP is the ruling party in India.
Regional police said BJP Kisan Morcha district president Ghulam Rasool Dar and his wife, Jawahira Banoo, were indiscriminately shot, after militants barged into their rented accommodation in Anantnag district, southern Kashmir, around 50km from here.
Regional police chief Vijay Kumar confirmed the incident, and said the militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba is behind the attack.
“A manhunt has been launched to arrest the attackers.”
BJP spokesman Altaf Thakur condemned the killing, calling it barbaric and cowardly.
He said attacking and killing innocent people will lead nowhere, adding that the acts reflect the frustration of the militants.
He expressed his sympathies to the bereaved family and urged police to apprehend the attackers and sternly punish them.
Jammu and Kashmir lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha also condemned the attack.
“This is an act of cowardice, and perpetrators of violence will be brought to justice very soon. My deepest condolences to the bereaved family in this time of grief,” he said on his official Twitter account.
The attack is the third this year on ruling party leaders and workers in the Kashmir region.
On March 29, militants launched an attack outside the municipal office in Sopore, around 55km north of here, killing two municipal councilors – Shams-ud-din Peer and Riyaz Ahmad – and police constable Shafqat Ahmad.
On June 3, militants shot dead BJP councillor Rakesh Pandit while he was without his two security guards in the Tral area. – Bernama, August 10, 2021
