Militants shot dead one more Kashmiri Pandit in Kashmir on Saturday while he was on his way to the orchard at Choudhary Gund in South Kashmir district of Shopian.
Security forces swung into action and launched a manhunt to nab the killers.
The victim, identified as Puran Krishan Bhat, a Kashmiri Pandit.
Bhat was rushed to a hospital for treatment where he succumbed to his injuries.
“Terrorists fired upon a #civilian (minority) Shri Puran Krishan Bhat while he was on way to an orchard in Chowdari Gund #Shopian. He was immidiately shifted to hospital for treatment where he #succumbed. Area cordoned off. Search in progress, (sic)” Kashmir Zone Police tweeted.
In a statement issued soon after, Kashmiri Pandit Sangarsh Samiti (KPSS) said that the killing was a message to the union home minister that “everything is not ok” in Kashmir.
According to KPSS president Sanjay Tickoo, authorities are pressuring the victim’s family to perform last rites as soon as possible to restore normalcy.
This is the sixth killing of a Kashmiri Pandit in Kashmir since the revocation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019. Around 130 civilians have been killed in Jammu and Kashmir besides over 100 security personnel and more than 500 militants. .
