Srinagar, Mar 24: The killing of 24 Kashmiri Pandits early today was the tenth major strike in Jammu and Kashmir after Mufti Mohammad Sayeed-led coalition government took over power in the state on November two. The month of November witnessed most of the violent incidents in the state, including an attack on the Raghunath temple in Jammu on November 24 which left 12 pilgrims dead and 54 others injured, officials said. Earlier, on November 11, seven security personnel were killed and six others injured in a land-mine blast at Ramsoo on Srinagar-Jammu National Highway. The incident was followed by a suicide attack on a CRPF camp in the heart of Srinagar on November 22 which killed six jawans, killing of five army personnel and four family members in an IED blast at Banihal on November 23 and a rocket attack on the local station of Radio Kashmir.

People's Democratic Party (PDP) headed by Mufti suffered a setback when its Pampore MLA Abdul Aziz Mir was gunned down by militants near his house at Konibal on December 20. However, the party overcame the setback and conducted a bye-poll only to retain the seat.


Barring killing of five civilians in an IED blast in Baramulla district on Feb 20, the months of Jan and Feb remained somewhat calm with no major incident reported.


The level of violence went up in the current month which witnessed two powerful bomb blasts, one each inside a shop and a bus, in Rajouri on March 12 and March 13 in which six civilians were killed and several others injured.


On March 15, militants attacked a police post in Udhampur district killing 13 people including eleven cops.
Bureau Report