Pulwama (Jammu & Kashmir): Sombre scenes were witnessed at the wreath-laying ceremony of sub-inspector Farooq Ahmad Mir at the Commando Training Centre Lethpora in Pulwama. The body of the slain police officer was wrapped in tricolour as close relatives paid respects to the slain officer who was allegedly shot dead by terrorists on Friday evening.
Mir's body was found near his home in a paddy field at Samboora village in Pulwama district on Saturday morning. Police rushed to the spot. Mir had a bullet injury near his heart. The officials said Mir was posted in the IRP 23rd Battalion. The wreath-laying ceremony was attended by top officials of the police and other civil officers including ADG Armed Syed Javed Mujtaba Gilani, DIG South Kashmir Range Abdul Jabar, and SSP Awantipora Muhammad Yousuf.
Also read: Police and Army seize explosives in Tral in J&K
Talking to the media, a close relative of the slain sub-inspector said that at around 8 pm on Friday, Farooq went to the paddy fields near his home in Pampore village to fetch water. Noticing his long absence, his family member tried calling him multiple times but to no avail. The family members became anxious and rushed to look for him after which they found his body.
"Farooq was a good man. We did not know why he was killed. What crime had he committed? We demand the government to investigate this murder," one of the relatives said. Ahmad is survived by his old father, wife, two daughters, and a son. This is the third incident of killing police personnel in the valley. On May 25, a police constable, Saifullah Qadri, 45, was killed while his nine-year-old daughter was injured when militants opened fire on them outside their house in Soura, on the outskirts of Srinagar.
On May 13, militants shot a policeman, Riyaz Ahmad Thoker, at his village of Gudoora in Pulwama. At least eight J&K Police personnel have been killed in the Valley since the beginning of the year. While 42 security personnel were killed last year, half of them (21) were from the J&K Police.
