4 Of A Family Among 6 Found Dead In Kashmir

Six persons, including four of a family, were found dead in two houses in Jammu province of the Indian-administered Kashmir last night, with the police suspecting it to be a case of poisoning.

In a statement, a police spokesman said a woman named Shahzada, who lives in Barzalla locality of Kashmir capital Srinagar, informed them by phone last night that her brother Noor-ul-Habib was not answering her calls and she feared he might have committed suicide.

Police teams rushed to the two houses in Sidhra locality of Jammu and found the bodies of Sakina Begum, her two daughters Naseema Akhtar and Rubina Bano and son Zafar Salim besides those of Noor-ul-Habib and Sajad Ahmed. A foul smell was emanating from the bodies, the police said.

All the deceased hail from Kashmir Valley. The police said it remains to be ascertained whether it is a case of suicide or homicide or both.

Militant's house seized

Meanwhile, a day after suspected militants shot dead a Hindu farmer and injured his brother in the southern Shopian district, police said the process has begun for seizing the house of a militant who was responsible for the killing.

Additional Director General of Police Vijay Kumar told the media that the action has been taken under the provisions of law.

The father and three brothers of the militant, Adil Wani, have been arrested for "sheltering him" after the killing.

Seizing the home of an active insurgent is probably the first-of-its-kind measure the authorities have taken in Kashmir post-Aug. 5, 2019, when the Kashmir government scrapped the autonomous status of this Muslim-majority region.

Other measures include not handing the bodies of militants killed in gunfights to their families for last rites, as such occasions would attract large anti-India gatherings that, according to the police, would inspire the youth to pick up arms. -