Detainee who shot at cop in SOG camp killed in encounter
Probe ordered into weapon snatching incident
Srinagar: The detainee who shot at and injured a constable inside the SOG camp in the Tral area of south Kashmir’s Pulwama district, was killed in a gunbattle with security forces in the early hours of Thursday, officials said.
Mohammad Amin Malik was shot dead by the security forces following an overnight encounter, a police official said.
Police on Thursday said that Malik was an “active Hizbul Mujahideen militant”.
A police statement said Mohammad Amin Malik, son of Abdul Ahad Malik of Nagbal Machhma, Tral, was arrested on May 30 along with “incriminating materials viz arms, ammunition and explosives including unlicensed 12 bore gun, live rounds, explosives, iron/steel balls, 9 feature phones and other warlike stores used in fabrication of IEDs”.
While a case (FIR No. 48/2021) under relevant sections of law was registered at Police Station Tral, Malik was brought from Police Station Tral to the Police Component (SOG camp), Tral for further interrogation, police said.
During the interrogation Malik got hold of the service rifle (AK-47) of Constable Amjad Khan and fired indiscriminately with intention to kill the police personnel and critically wounded Khan, it said.
Police said Malik later engaged the forces by firing intermittently from the snatched weapon.
“Sensing grave danger to the lives of police personnel and that of the terror operative, his mother and Executive Magistrate were brought on the site and repeated sincere efforts were made to persuade him to through away the weapon and surrender,” the police statement said.
It said that Malik “displayed complete defiance to such persuasions and not only refused to surrender but also fired upon the police party engaged in persuasion”.
“One of the police personnel was hit with a bullet on chest and survived because of bulletproof jacket he was wearing,” police said.
In the subsequent gunfight and after “failing in the efforts to ensure his surrender”, Malik was killed by the joint team of forces comprising Awantipora Police, 180 Bn CRPF and 42 RR “following the rules and SoP of such engagement”, police said.
As per the police statement, the snatched weapon was also recovered from his possession.
In this regard, case (FIR No. 61/2021) under relevant sections of law stands registered at Police Station Tral and investigation taken up.
The body of slain militant was sent to Police Hospital Srinagar for medico-legal formalities.
Police said slain was an active militant of Hizb ul Mujahideen in the past and was arrested in 2003.
His brother Shabir Malik was also a militant of AGuH outfit who was killed in a gunfight at Brenpathri in 2019, police said.
Meanwhile, local news agency KNO quoted Malik’s brother, Zahoor Ahmed Malik as saying that police had raided their house last week looking for his bother (Mohammad Amin Malik) but he was not at home at that time.
“Three days after the police raid, we presented Amin before DySP and he promised that he will be back home within three days,” Zahoor was quoted as saying by KNO.
He said that a few days ago, he went to see his brother and was shocked to see his knee and wrist were broken. “My brother told me that he was beaten and tied to a chair after which his wrist and knee were broken,” alleged Zahoor.
On Wednesday, Zahoor said that they got a call at 4 pm from police station. “We were told that Amin has snatched the weapon. We took our mother, who is depression patient and is not able to hear properly as she has received bullet injury in the past and has also lost her son in 2019, to persuade Amin to surrender,” Zahoor said, adding that “my mother made several appeals to Amin and told us that she wasn’t able to hear whether Amin was responding or not.”
Zahoor said today morning, “we came to know that he has been killed. Irony is that we were not even allowed to have his last glimpse. His body was taken to some unknown location.”
Zahoor said that “the entire incident must be probed impartially.”
He said his brother was an active militant who surrendered in 2003. “Since his surrender he was never called for questioning as he was earning his livelihood by working as a labourer.”
Zahoor said his brother left behind wife and two sons aged 14 and 7 years.
Meanwhile, Police has ordered a high level inquiry to find out possible security lapse and “dereliction of duty” by a police constable at Police Complex Tral in south Kashmir that led to weapon snatching and subsequent killing of a “Hizbul Mujahideen militant”.
Mohammad Amin Malik, who police said was an “active Hizb militant” snatched the rifle of a constable during questioning at SOG camp Tral and was subsequently killed in a gunfight with security forces.
News agency KNO quoting a police officer reported that a high level inquiry has been ordered to find out how Malik managed to snatch weapon and open fire at the police personnel.
A policeman injured in the firing is undergoing treatment at a hospital.
“The injured policeman will also be quizzed as to how Malik snatched the rifle from him,” the officer said.
He said that the inquiry team will be headed by a senior officer that would look into how Malik managed to snatch the weapon of police constable Amjad Khan.
The inquiry, the officer said, will be completed within 15 days and “guilty will be brought to book”.
