Srinagar: Three Al-Badr militants were killed while one surrendered before security forces in an encounter in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday, police said.
Acting on a specific input about the presence of militants in the Kanigam area of Shopian in south Kashmir, security forces launched a cordon and search operation there during the night, a police spokesman said.
He said as the presence of militants got ascertained during the operation, they were given an opportunity to surrender.
Family members of the trapped militants were also called to the encounter site to motivate and persuade them to surrender, the spokesman said.
Due to great efforts and utmost patience of the security forces and repeated surrender appeals with the help of their family members, one of the trapped militants Tausif Ahmad ultimately laid down his arms, he said.
Ahmad later also appealed to his trapped companions to surrender, but they turned down the offer and fired indiscriminately on the search party of the forces, the spokesman said.
The fire was retaliated, leading to an encounter in which three militants were killed and their bodies retrieved from the site of the encounter, he added.
The spokesman identified the slain militants as Danish Mir, Mohammad Umer Bhat -- both residents of Khajapora Shopian and Zaid Bashir Reshi, a resident of the Raben area of Shopian.
As per police records, they were affiliated with Al-Badr, he said.
The spokesman said inspector General of Police, Kashmir, Vijay Kumar has congratulated the security forces for showing utmost patience and exhibiting professionalism, which resulted in saving the life of a "misguided youth".
He said the IGP has reiterated his appeal to all "misguided youth" who have joined militant ranks to shun the path of violence and return to the mainstream as the society, and most importantly their parents, need them.
"We will welcome and accept them with open arms," Kumar said.
The spokesman said incriminating material, including arms and ammunition, was recovered from the site of the encounter and taken into case records for further investigation to probe the complicity of the trio in other terror crimes.
