Held-Kashmir ruling party leader gunned down
Pakistan Times Kashmir Desk

SRINAGAR: Guerrillas gunned down a senior leader of the ruling Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) in occupied Jammu and Kashmir, police said Sunday.

Armed guerrillas entered the house of Ghulam Rasool Bhat, the PDP zonal president, in Lar, 35km east of Srinagar, on Saturday and shot him dead, the police said.

“Bhat died instantly,” said a senior police official.

“He received several bullet wounds in his chest and abdomen. The militants escaped under the cover of darkness. Search has been mounted to trace the killers,” he said.

Senior police officers visited the area yesterday morning. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the killing.

Violence has continued despite an ongoing peace process between India and Pakistan to resolve the decades’ old dispute over the Himalayan state of Jammu and Kashmir.●