Srinagar, May 26 (IANS) The killers of Kashmiri artiste Amreen Bhat killed by terrorists on Wednesday have been trapped in an ongoing encounter between terrorists and security forces at Aganhanzipora area at Awantipora in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district, officials said on Thursday.
"Both killers (LeT terrorists) trapped in Awantipora encounter," Jammu and Kashmir Police quoting Inspector General Police Kashmir zone Vijay Kumar tweeted.
The firefight between terrorists and security forces took place after a joint team of the police and the security forces cordoned off the area and launched a search operation on the basis of specific information about presence of terrorists.
As the security forces zeroed in on the spot where terrorists were hiding, they came under a heavy volume of fire that triggered the encounter.
Lieutenant Colonel Harjinder Singh who died in the tragic helicopter crash along with the Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat and others, had been married to Prafulla from Karnataka. Prafulla is the native of Salmaru village near Karkala town in Udupi district. A pall of gloom descended on the family after the news of the tragedy broke out.
The force said that positive identification of only three mortal remains -- Gen Rawat, Madhulika Rawat and Brig L.S. Lidder -- has been possible as of now, and their mortal remains will be released to the next of kin for final rites as desired by the respective families.
Almost 15 months after the farmers' agitation began against the (now scrapped) farm laws and other issues, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmer unions that led the protest, said on Thursday that it has suspended the agaitation after receiving positive assurances from the government on their demands, adding that the borders of Delhi will be cleared by Saturday.
India's civil aviation regulator, the DGCA, on Thursday extended the ban on scheduled international commercial flights till January 31.Earlier, India had announced plans to allow resumption of scheduled commercial international passenger services from December 15 with certain conditions.
The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with the country's top security officers held a meeting on Wednesday over the situation arising out of the IAF chopper crash in Tamil Nadu that killed Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, his wife and 11 others onboard the ill-fated helicopter.