IGP's driver, policeman killed, 11 wounded in J

Srinagar, Oct 17 (UNI) Two Jammu and Kashmir policemen, including a driver of an Inspector General of Police (IGP), were killed and 11 others wounded, four of them security personnel, in separate incidents across the state today, an official spokesman said.

Head constable Vikram Singh, the driver of IGP, Kashmir S M Sahai, was shot at and critically wounded by militants near the Punjab National Bank at Batamaloo here this afternoon.

He was immediately rushed to a hospital where he was declared brought dead, the spokesman added.

In the second incident near the historic Hazratbal shrine, housing the holy relic of the Prophet Mohammad, he said militants shot at and seriously wounded constable Mohammad Dilawar at the Telbal bus stand on the city outskirts this afternoon.

He was rushed to the Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS), Soura here in a critical condition where he later succumbed to wounds, the spokesman said.

The Pakistan-based JeM has claimed the responsibility for both the attacks. A person, who claimed to be the spokesman of the outfit, telephoned the local media here and owned the responsibility of the attacks on policemen.

During the past few days, militants have targeted policemen in the city. On Sunday, a police constable was killed and another critically wounded in the busy Lal Chowk area here.

The spokesman said militants fired upon a party of the Special Operation Group (SOG) near their camp at Town hall, Sopore this afternoon, causing serious injury to a constable, Farooq Ahmad.

Three Border Security Force (BSF) personnel were among the ten people wounded in a grenade blast in Baramulla district of north Kashmir this afternoon.

Militants hurled a hand grenade towards BSF personnel in the compound of the District hospital which exploded causing injuries havaldar Ghulam Mohammad Sheikh, constable Ratnam and Ravinder Singh and seven civilians.

The injured were admitted to a hospital where the condition of the BSF personnel was stated to be critical.

Security forces apprehended two upper-ground activists of the Al Badr militant outfit at Dangiwacha in border district of Kupwara today and three hand grenades and 23 rounds seized from them.

The spokesman said militants snatched away a mobile phone of a civilian, Altaf Ahmed Wani, at Ohangam, Beerwa in central Kashmir district of Badgam today.

Militants intercepted a vehicle, bearing registration number JKo1J-6039, at Pinglana in Pulwama district of south Kashmir last evening and forcibly took away Rs 25,000 and two mobile phones from the four occupants, he added.

The spokesman said a gunfight erupted between security forces and militants at Bharat in Doda district of Jammu region during the intervening night of October 16-17.

However, no one was wounded in the exchange of fire and the militants managed to escape from the scene. One AK rifle, one magazine and 30 rounds left behind by the militants were seized from the spot, the spokesman said.

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