This is not the first such attack on the BJP. On 6 August, a Jammu and Kashmir sarpanch was shot dead by terrorists outside his residence near Kulgam. The sarpanch, identified as Sajad Ahmed Khandey, belonged to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and was shot from a close range, reported IANS. He was reportedly the district vice-president for the party in Kulgam.
Two days prior to that, another sarpanch in Kulgam was critically injured in a militant attack. According to the police, militants had barged into Sarpanch Arif Ahmad’s house in Akhran village of Kulgam on Tuesday and opened fire from close range. Ahmad, too, is reportedly a member of the BJP.
In early July, former Bandipora BJP president Wasim Bari, his father and brother were killed after terrorists opened fire at them.
Politicians Condemn Attack
Soon after the news broke, J&K politicians such as National Conference leader and former chief minister Omar Abdullah and People’s Democratic Party leader Mehbooba Mufti took to Twitter to condemn the attack.
(With inputs from ANI and IANS.)
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