Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Kashmir Vijay Kumar on Tuesday said in a press conference that the four persons killed in an encounter at Hyderpora in Srinagar included a foreign terrorist, a local terrorist, an over-ground worker (OGW) and the house owner.
Speaking on the Hyderpora encounter, the house owner who was injured in terrorist fire, succumbed to his injuries. Terrorists have been hiding on the top floor of his building. As per source and digital evidence, he was working as terror associate, IGP Kashmir said.
On a specific input generated by police regarding the presence of terrorists in an illegal call center in a private building in Srinagar's Hyderpora, a joint cordon & search operation was launched by police, 2RR & CRPF in the area, police said.
Incriminating materials, arms & ammunition including 2 pistols, 3 magazines, 6 mobile phones, one call centre (6 computers, VOIP enabled) various virtual foreign numbers, dairies with alpha, beta, gamma codes, 1 US map were recovered from the site of the encounter, it added.
Recoveries and other digital evidence indicated that a fake call centre was established to provide logistic support to active terrorists. Keeping in view law & order scenario, bodies of the killed terrorists, associate & building owner were sent to Handwara for burial, police added.
In order to show the suspect call centre in the building, the owner of the building namely Altaf Ahmad as well as the tenant namely Mudasir Ahmad were also called to accompany the search party, Kashmir police said.
As the search party approached a room on the top floor of the building, hiding terrorists started firing indiscriminately at the party. In the initial exchange of fire, both the persons accompanying search party received critical gunshot injuries & succumbed to injuries.
Police said the house owner was killed in crossfire while the OGW had provided his rented space to the terrorists.
"There were three rooms at the top floor of the house, we didn't know the exact location, the house owner Altaf Ahmad Dar and a second person Mudassir Gul, who was living on rent in the building were called," the IG said.
"The door was knocked but terrorists did not open it. Then the door was again knocked, terrorists opened indiscriminate firing with a pistol. In self defence the search party resorted to firing. We stopped the encounter to rescue the two civilians but where they were standing it was difficult to rescue them."
He said during the encounter two terrorists were killed. They were identified as Bilal Bhai code Haider, most probably a Pakistani terrorist, his acompolice from Ramban Banihal. He said that the building owner, Altaf Ahmed, was killed in the crossfire.
"It is not sure whether the terrorist bullet or the bullets fired by forces hit him. Terrorists were carrying pistols and it would be clear after investigations whose bullet hit him," he said.
He said Altaf Ahmad Dar had given three rooms on rent on the top floor to Mudassir Gul, a contractor by profession who was running a fake call center.
"A call center which has six cabins with six computers and six CPUs and several US maps besides other materials in the hideout were recovered like warm clothes, corex and injections which the terrorists used after getting injured."
He said Mudasir Ahmed, who was living on a rent in the building, had provided shelter to Haider and his associate.
"I want to share that the attack on Sunday in which a police personnel was attacked and took a bullet in the neck, the terrorist involved was brought by Mudassir in his vehicle to the hideout and kept there. Mudassir was running a terrorist module," he said.
"The hideout was in the house of Altaf Ahmad, so we will count him as an OGW. He died in cross-firing, we could have saved him, but it was difficult since firing was going on between both sides. Mudasir was a top ranking OGW."
(With inputs from IANS)
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