VILLAGE HEAD SHOT DEAD: A village-head was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in a Kashmir town Saturday. Sources told Kashmir Dispatch Ghulam Ahmad Bhat, the village-head associated with the Congress party, was shot at in Bomia village of the Sopore town, about 55 kms from here. Bhat, 60, shot at near his residence and was shifted to local medical facility. Medical sources say Bhat was shifted to Shri Maharaja Hari Singh hospital in regions capital Srinagar, adding but he died on the way. Local sources in the town, considered to be a stronghold of anti-India insurgency, say the village-headman had survived a bid on life in 2010 when suspected militants fired a volley of bullets on him. He had received a bullet in his hand in the shootout and had survived miraculously, they say. Bhat had won during village council (Panchayat) elections on National Conference ticket, however, he supported the Congress party during the ongoing assembly elections. Village Council headmen have been targeted in the conflict-torn region since the elections for the local bodies were held after about two decades in 2013. The government blames anti-India insurgents for the killings which have escalated since the elections for the local government began in November this year. The incident took place on a day when, the voting is taking place for 20 assembly seats in border districts of Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri. There are 213 candidates in the fray in this phase. Soon after the shooting, government forces including units of India army, paramilitary and counter-insurgency unit of police cordoned off the area and conducted searches, but no arrests were made.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Dec 2014 10:16:12 +0000
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