Jammu, Oct 29: Army troops today shot dead the third militant who had escaped from the cordon and taken shelter in a mess quarter at Akhnoor, about 25 km from here, official sources said. The ultra, who escaped the encounter between Army and militants on October 27, surfaced last evening and entered a three-storied mess quarter building killing two girls and injuring six others, they said. The troops had evacuated all the employees from adjoining quarters, official sources said, adding Army commandoes then launched operation to eliminate the militant. In the wee hours today, commandos had thrown smokeshells in the MES (Military Engineering Service) quarter on the second floor where the militant, who was involved in the attack on Shalimar Express, had taken one Ashok Kumar and his two children as hostage, official sources said.
When there was no response they went inside the house and shot dead the militant, they said.
The militant, holed up in the Akhnoor-Tawi river bank area, had entered the MES residential area after giving a slip to the security forces and opened fire on people yesterday, they said, adding the operation to track him was on after his two accomplices were killed on Monday.
Meanwhile, a seriously injured woman Shyama Devi, who was brought here from Akhnoor for treatment, succumbed to her injuries in a government hospital.
Bureau Report