On an average, a militant was killed every day in Jammu and Kashmir in July this year as 31 ultras were neutralised in 15 encounters with security forces during the month.
While 43 militants were killed in separate encounters across Kashmir in the first four months of this year, only 15 ultras were neutralized in May and June during the Covid-19 lockdown.
Of the 15 gunfights in July, four each were reported in Kulgam and Pulwama and one each in Anantnag, Shopian, Srinagar, Kupwara, Bandipora, Baramulla and Rajouri districts.
Out of 31 slain militants, Neeshaz Lone of Tral Pulwama, Arif Hajam of Sadoora, Anantnag, Ishfaq Dar from Heff, Shopian, Aijaz alias Abu Huraira, a non-local, Fayaz War of Sopore, Sharik Baba of Bandipora and Aamir Mir of Check-i-Choland, Shopian were commanders associated with Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) outfit.
Mehrajudin Halwai of Kupwara was affiliated with Hizbul Mujahideen while Ismail Alvi alias Lamboo, who was killed on the last day of July, was a top commander of Jaish-e-Mohammad, who had planned and executed the February 2019 deadly fidayeen (suicide) attack in Pulwama in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed.
A senior police officer said the LeT has been almost wiped out mainly from south Kashmir and other than Reyaz Ahmad from Kakapora, Pulwama, no local top commander of the outfit is active in the region now.
According to the army, there are 200-225 militants active across J&K despite the fact that no infiltration has taken place so far this year. Among 89 militants killed in J&K this year, only seven are Pakistanis while the rest are all locals.
According to the police, in recent years, some boys had gone to Pakistan on a student visa, where they got arms training and came back. “In total 40 youth had gone to Pakistan on a student visa. 27 out of them picked up arms and got killed here. Those who are still across are in touch with families, and we are keeping a tab on it,” Kashmir police chief Vijay Kumar said.
Sources said as infiltration has dried up along the Line of Control (LoC), Pakistan is now relying more on recruiting locals into militancy. “Besides, some Kashmiri youth are being sent to Pakistan on student visas where they are given specialized arms training and sent back to carry out terror activities in Kashmir,” they revealed.