Indian forces claim to have killed 2 Al Badr militants

SRINAGAR, Jammu and Kashmir

Security forces in Indian-administered Kashmir claimed to have killed two Al Badr-affiliated militants in the outskirts of Srinagar on Monday.

Kashmir Range Police Chief Vijay Kumar said in a statement that the slain were locals and were linked to the Al Badr militant group.

Regional police, paramilitary troopers, and Indian Army troops cordoned off the Khonmoh area on the outskirts of Srinagar after receiving information about the presence of militants.

“The encounter started in the morning, and we tried to force them to surrender, but they refused and fired at security forces before they were neutralized,” Kumar said.

He claimed that there are now only five militants active and a vast network of "over ground workers" in the Capital City.

“Many of them have been arrested under the Public Safety Act, while others have been counseled and returned to their families. We are monitoring the situation around Srinagar effectively,” Kumar said.

However, Amnesty International and other international human rights organizations have described the Public Safety Act as draconian and lawless. Under this law, anyone can be imprisoned for up to six months, which can be extended to two years if a trial is conducted.

Militancy in Srinagar and its surrounding areas has recently increased after a period of relative calm. Last year, there were over a dozen encounters, including one on Dec. 29 in Parimpora, in which three young men were killed.

Their families, on the other hand, refuted the police allegation, saying that they were all innocent citizens. Later, the families of the slain men organized protests.

Despite the pandemic, police reports say that over 50 militants have been killed in separate military operations in the region this year.

Disputed region

Kashmir is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed both in full. A small sliver of Kashmir is also held by China.

Since they were partitioned in 1947, the two countries have fought three wars -- in 1948, 1965, and 1971 -- two of them over Kashmir.

Some Kashmiri groups in Jammu and Kashmir have been fighting against Indian rule for independence, or unification with neighboring Pakistan.

According to several human rights organizations, thousands of people have reportedly been killed in the conflict in the region since 1989.