Top commander of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was killed in an ambush in south Kashmir’s Pulwama on Wednesday, as two recently injured security personnel succumbed to their injuries.
Muhammad Ayub Lone alias Ayub Lelhari was killed in an ambush laid on the Pulwama-Srinagar stretch. Police sources said Lelhari, who was “No.1 LeT local militant” from Pulwama, was spotted travelling in a vehicle after a specific tip off. “It was a brief encounter,” said the police spokesman.
Lelhari, also considered the main local face of the LeT in south Kashmir, was once close confidante of slain LeT operation commander Abu Dujana.
Sources said the vehicle carrying Lelhari was ambushed at Pulwama’s Banderpora area. “The militant tried to flee towards an apple orchard but was fired upon and killed,” said the official. A policeman was also injured in the encounter.
Sources said Lelhari was being shifted to Srinagar for treatment after he suffered injuries in the 16-hour Samboora gunfight in Shopian on Sunday, in which three militants including Hizbul Mujahideen operational commander Yasin Itoo were killed.
“He (Lelhari) was one of the most wanted terrorists. It’s a great success for the forces,” said Director General of Police, J&K, S.P. Vaid.
Injured jawans dead
Meanwhile, a CRPF jawan, identified as Constable Reyaz Ahmad, who was injured in a grenade attack by militants in Budgam district on Monday, succumbed to his injuries on Wednesday in a Srinagar hospital.
An Army spokesman said injured soldier, Narendra Singh, who sustained bullet injuries from across the Line of Control in Rampur Sector on August 7, also succumbed to his injuries on Wednesday.
Lt. Gen. J.S. Sandhu, Chinar Corps Commander, and all ranks “paid homage to the martyr”.
Singh (43) had joined the Army in 1994 and hailed from Village Haripur in Dehradun. He is survived by his wife Asha Devi and two daughters.
“The mortal remains of the martyr were flown for last rites to his native village in Dehradun where he would be laid to rest with full military honours,” said the army spokesman.
LeT reacts to PM’s speech
Meanwhile, militant LeT on Wednesday said it rejects Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “fake sympathy”.
“It is a long followed tradition by Chanakya puppets as a saying goes, ‘Malice concealed behind sweet talk’. If Mr. Modi is concerned about the Kashmir issue then why youth are being martyred on a daily basis?” LeT chief Mehmood Shah in a statment issued in Srinagar.
He said Mr. Modi “is denying the ground realities”. “Muslims are being selectively targeted. Freedom of religion is scarce in Kashmir. If Mr. Modi is concerned about the solution to the Kashmir dispute, then he must vacate Indian forces and let the UN resolutions be implemented,” he said.
