KULGAM: A terrorist shot dead a bank employee on the bank premises in Kashmir’s Kulgam district on Thursday, the eighth targeted killing in the Valley since May 1 and the third of a non-Muslim government employee.
Vijay Kumar, a manager with the Ellaqui Dehati Bank, received grievous gunshot injuries and died on his way to hospital, officials said. Originally a resident of Hanumangarh in Rajasthan, he had joined the Kulgam branch only a week ago.
The bank manager's killing came within 24 hours of two major incidents in the adjoining Shopian district. A civilian, Farooq Ahmad Sheikh, was injured in a targeted terror attack inside his home; in another incident, three soldiers were injured after an explosion in their vehicle.
The recent attack has also come just two days after a Hindu teacher from Jammu, Rajni Bala, was killed by terrorists outside a school, also in Kulgam.
The killing sent National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Union Home Minister Amit Shah into a huddle and they are believed to have discussed the security situation in the Union Territory. The RAW chief was also present.
Shah will also chair a high-level meeting on Friday to take stock of the arrangements for the annual Amarnath yatra, which is being held after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hundreds of Kashmiri Pandits came out in Srinagar on Thursday in protest against the targeted killings. Many of them, especially government employees, have threatened to migrate to Jammu region, putting in jeopardy a jobs package offered to them by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
To stop them from leaving, the Union Territory administration put up barricades and locked the gates to transit camps where more than 4,000 Pandits reside.
Meanwhile, the Srinagar Airport authorities have debunked a media report which said that Kashmiri Pandits are flying out in large numbers.
‘‘We strongly rebut this sensational rumour mongering. We handle between 16,000 and 18,000 passengers every day. Today also the number of passengers was average. There is no heavy rush of minority community, as rumoured...Please do not spread rumours like this," the airport tweeted on its official handle.
