Srinagar- Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha strongly condemned the killing of a Kashmiri Pandit by te militants on Sunday in first such attack this year, and said his administration has given a free hand to security forces to deal with militants
Condemning the attack, the Lt Governor said the administration is standing strong with the bereaved family.
“My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family. The administration has given a free hand to the security forces to deal with the terrorists and we will continue to combat such acts of terrorism firmly and decisively,” the Lt Governor said in a statement here.
Activists of J&K unit of Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) led by their president Manish Sahni staged a demonstration outside their office at Channi Himmat on the outskirts of Jammu to protest the killing of Sharma.
“Despite the government’s claims of normalcy, the terrorists are frequently carrying out targeted killings in the valley. We condemn the killing and demand relocation of the Hindu employees who are on protest strike in Jammu over the past eight months,” said Sahni amid anti-Pakistan and anti-terrorism sloganeering by the participants.
Prime Minister package Kashmiri migrant Pandit employees and reserved category Dogra employees are camping in Jammu seeking their relocation after they fled the valley in May following targeted killings of their two colleagues Rahul Bhat and Rajni Balla.
J&K Congress chief spokesperson Ravinder Sharma also condemned the killing of Sharma and said “the attack is a cause of concern and depicts the failure of the government to ensure protection of innocent civilians.”
“Instead of making hollow claims about normalcy, the government should ensure protection of minorities and other innocent civilians. The Kashmiri pandit and Dogra employees are on protest in Jammu and the government is compelling them to return to their duties in the valley which is not possible in such an atmosphere,” Sharma said.
Separately, J&K Congress spokesperson Jahanzaib Sirwal demanded exemplary punishment to the perpetrators of targeted killings.
“The killing of a Kashmiri Pandit exposes the claims of normalcy..Center should take adequate measures to stop target killings and save the precious lives rather than befooling people by claiming return of normalcy in the valley.
“The perpetrators of this heinous crime must be identified and given exemplary punishment,” Sirwal said.
Meanwhile, Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) chairman Ghulam Nabi Azad also condemned the killing of a Kashmiri Pandit ATM guard, saying it was a matter of grave concern.
“Any killing, especially a targeted killing, is a matter of grave concern and condemnable. We condemn it,” Azad told reporters here.
Sanjay Sharma (40), who worked as an ATM guard, was shot in the chest at point-blank range by militants in the Achan area of the south Kashmir district around 11 am on Sunday, police said.
The DPAP chief said every targeted killing is condemnable, be that of a Kashmiri Pandit or a Muslim or a Sikh and whether the victim is from Jammu or Kashmir.
However, the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister said the most unfortunate part is that while many people were arrested in connection with such incidents over the last 30 years, “not one killer has been arrested for these targeted killings in the last two years”.
Azad said while it was a reality that militancy has decreased in J-K, what is worrisome is that such target killings have been taking place for the last few months.
He said such mysterious killings pain him and he requested the government to make security agencies, intelligence agencies and law and order enforcement agencies answerable for such killings as “no one was arrested for such killings”.
The former Union minister said except the targeted killings taking place, there was “no militancy in J-K”.
“There is no hartal, there is no stone-pelting. So, there is no justification for the LG’s rule and delaying elections,” he added.
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