SRINAGAR: In first such incident, a group of armed militants barged into the residence of senior police officer in South Kashmir and warned his family members that he should quit the job or face consequences.
The J&K police chief has asked militants that their fight is with police and they should not bring families into the conflict.
A police officer said a group of four militants barged into the residence of a DySP-rank officer in South Kashmir’s Shopian district on Saturday evening.
The police officer, who is currently posted in Srinagar, was not present in the house.
“The militants threatened the family members of the police officer. The militants told his family that he should quit the police force or face severe consequence,” the officer said.
According to him, the militants told the family that the policemen and officers were harassing the family members of the militants and it won’t be tolerated anymore.
The militants warned the family that in case police does not stop harassing their kith and kin, then they can also target family members of the police officers, he said.
The militants before leaving the place smashed the electronic appliances and broke window panes of the house.
Police have registered a case and launched a manhunt to track the militants, who had barged into the house and threatened the family of the police officer.
It is the first instance when militants have barged into the residence of the police officer and warned his family.
Reacting to the militant threat, J&K police chief S P Vaid told New Indian Express why should policemen and officers quit the job.
“Instead the militants should give up the militancy,” he said.
Vaid said police does not harass the family members of the militants. “We don’t involve the family members of the militants”.
“We don’t harass families of anybody. We have involved the families in making the militants surrender. We never harassed the family members of the militants,” he said.
Stressing that militants should not involve families, Vaid said, “The fight is between militants and police and families should not be brought into this conflict."
Asked whether security at residences of police officers would be increased, he said, “Necessary steps would be taken as per the requirement and threat perception”.
In December last year, Hizbul Mujahideen’s Kashmir chief Zakir Rashid alias Moosa had released a video warning policemen that if they continue to “harass” their families, the militants too won’t spare their families.
“We will go after your families also if you continue to harass our families,” he had said and warned, “Do you think your families are safe because they are in Jammu or other parts of India. We can reach them anywhere, whether they are in Jammu or Kanyakumari and target them. We are very much capable of doing that”.
Zakir, who was an engineering student in Chandigarh and joined Hizb four years back, took over as Hizb chief in Kashmir after killing of Kashmir militancy’s poster boy Burhan Wani in an encounter with security forces on July 8 last year.