Ircon engineers escape bid on lives, guard among 9 killed in J

Srinagar, Apr 16 (UNI) Militants today made an abortive bid on the lives of two engineers with Ircon, the construction arm of the Indian Railways, killing their guard and planting an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), while in other incidents, three militants were among eight people killed in Jammu and Kashmir overnight.

The Al-Mansoorian militant outfit claimed responsibility for the attack on two IRCON engineers which came two days after the police claimed to have gunned down two Lashkar-e-Toiba militants responsible for the killing of the engineers and about a dozen security personnel.

A person, identifying himself as Al-Mansoorian spokesperson Amir Mir, telephoned the offices of the local media here to claim responsibility for the killings.

''The cadres from our outfit carried out the attack and also snatched a riffle from the guard,'' he said.

A Police spokesperson said unidentified gunmen suddenly appeared near a railway track at Naina Bhatapora in Pulwama district when Ircon engineers were inspecting the construction site.

The assailants opened fire in which one of the Personal Security Officers (PSO) of the engineers, constable Bishamber Das, was killed.

The two engineers -- Hilal Ahmed and Kishen Kumar -- escaped unhurt, he said adding that the militants later took away the INSAS rifle of the constable.

The spokesperson said the militants indiscriminately fired upon a Santro Car at Mohanvij Kakapora under police station Pulwama targeting one Tariq Ahmed Mir (PHE Daily Wager) who was driving the car, carrying a police party of Police Post Kakapora who were on their way back to the police station after investigating of a case.

Due to the militant firing, Mir sustained minor injuries and the two pedestrians identified as Farooq Ahmed Wani and Shakoor Ahmed Dar died in the firing.

UNI