SRINAGAR: Security forces launched an extensive search operation today to track down the terrorists behind the killing of a local doctor and six migrant workers in the Gangangeer area of Ganderbal district.
The attack occurred last evening, prompting an immediate joint operation by the police and Army to locate the attackers, believed to be a small group of two to three terrorists. Senior security personnel are stationed in Ganderbal to oversee the mission, and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrived to support the initial investigation.
The Resistance Front (TRF), considered a proxy group of Lashkar-e-Toiba, claimed responsibility for the killings of the construction workers.
ALSO READ: CIK dismantles major terror recruitment network in Kashmir – THE NEW INDIAN
An official disclosed that TRF leader Sheikh Sajjad Gul, operating from Pakistan, orchestrated the attack. Acting on his orders, the TRF’s local unit targeted both Kashmiri and non-Kashmiri individuals for the first time.
The victims, employed by an infrastructure firm working on the 6.5 km Z-Morh tunnel near Gagangeer on the Srinagar-Sonamarg route, included two from Jammu and Kashmir (one being a doctor), three from Bihar, and one each from Punjab and Madhya Pradesh. The Z-Morh tunnel, nearing completion, is one of two key tunnels that will create an all-weather road linking Ladakh to the rest of India.
On Monday morning, thousands gathered in Naidgam, Budgam, to mourn 52-year-old Dr. Shahnawaz Qadir Dar. Just two weeks earlier, the family had been celebrating the wedding of his daughter, which has now turned to grief.
ALSO READ: Six migrant workers killed in terror attack in Central Kashmir – THE NEW INDIAN
Shahnawaz had raised his siblings after their parents passed away when they were young, his sister told The New Indian.
Dr. Shahnawaz leaves behind a wife, two sons, and a daughter. His son Mohsin, while talking to The New Indian, expressed how his father’s death had shattered his hopes. “My father was a respected man here. He wanted me to follow his path and become a doctor, though I aspired to join the IAS. My grandfather, a police inspector, believed in me. My father was committed to helping me achieve my goal, but now that he is gone, I have to take care of my family. I appeal to the authorities to help me fulfil my dream,” Mohsin said.
A resident described Dr. Shahnawaz as a martyr. “His killing has left these children without their father, and his death is a huge loss for the entire community. I urge the police and administration to ensure that those responsible face justice,” he said, adding that violent incidents like this have plagued the region for decades.