Suspected Lashkar-e-Taiba militants struck at a bank in Pulwama district on Wednesday, third such incident in the past two months, and decamped with Rs. 9.86 lakh. With this, the total looted amount post-demonetisation is over Rs. 30 lakh.
A group of three gunmen forced their entry into a J&K Bank branch located at Ratnipora village, Pulwama, around 30 km from Srinagar.
“Two armed men aimed a gun at us and demanded cash,” said a bank employee.
The bank was cordoned off by the security forces but the gunmen fled. Preliminary reports suggest that of the looted amount, Rs. 16,000 was in old denominations. The Army too joined the police to nab the militants.
“Those in the CCTV footage have been identified. It was shown to LeT sympathisers arrested earlier. One robber was identified as Abu Ali and another Abu Ismail, both foreign militants. One local militant, Arif Dar, is a resident of Lelhar,” said Superintendent of Police (Pulwama) Rayees Muhammad Bhat.
On November 21 and December 8, gunmen looted around Rs. 21 lakh from two banks in Budgam and Pulwama districts.
