Slain VDGs given tearful adieu in J-K's Kishtwar; villagers demand ex gratia for victim families

JAMMU: The last rites of the two Village Defence Guards killed by terrorists were performed near their village in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar district on Saturday, with locals demanding security and adequate relief, including a government job for each of the two families.

The bodies of Nazir Ahmed (42) and Kuldeep Kumar (40) were found near a rivulet deep inside the Kuntwara forest on Friday after a hectic 12-hour-long search operation.

The hunt for the terrorists behind the gruesome incident was underway, with additional forces mobilised from adjoining areas on Saturday to extend the cordon, officials said.

The bodies of the two Village Defence Guards reached their homes in Ohli village late Friday night.

Post-mortem examination of the bodies was conducted in the village in the morning which confirmed that they were shot in the head from behind, the officials said, adding that the victims were found blindfolded and their hands tied to their back.

They said the terrorists used a pistol to kill the unarmed VDGs, who had gone to the forest area to graze their cattle on Thursday. Kumar lost his father Amar Chand over a week ago and this was his first trip to the forest area after the tragedy, otherwise, it was his friend Ahmad who took care of his livestock during the mourning period.

While Ahmad was the first to be laid to rest at the local graveyard, Kumar's cremation took place in the periphery of the village with the participants chanting anti-Pakistan and anti-terrorism slogans.

"This was the second incident of its kind in our village as decades back one of the residents was shot dead by terrorists. The area was subsequently cleared of terrorism more than 15 years ago and the latest incident is a cause of concern for the villagers," former sarpanch Mohammad Farooq told PTI.

Nazir is survived by his wife, three sons and one daughter, besides a handicapped brother, while Kumar left behind his wife, two sons and a daughter.

Farooq said while the village is five kilometres from the last motorable road, it took almost eight hours for the search parties to retrieve the bodies from the forest area.

"Both the deceased belong to poor families and were the sole bread earners, leaving behind their children. We request the government to provide adequate ex gratia relief, including a government job to each family," he said.

The former sarpanch also demanded the strengthening of the VDGs in the village to counter terrorism.

"They (terrorists) want to create a wedge between our communities but we want to tell them that we have lived together for centuries and will thwart their nefarious designs," he said.

Firdous, another villager, said such incidents spread disturbance and "we want the government to recruit one VDG from each of the 130 houses." He demanded a massive search operation to wipe out the terrorists.

"People are frightened by this incident as we are mostly farmers and depend on the forest produce for livelihood," he added.

Rajesh Kumar, another villager, said the whole village was grieving. "We want the government to ensure proper rehabilitation of the families," he added.

Rikhi Raj slammed Pakistan and said killing unarmed and poor persons is no "Jihad".

"We shame the terrorists and Pakistan for this cowardly action. They cannot fight our army and are shedding the blood of innocents," he said.

The Kashmir Tigers, an offshoot of the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), has claimed that it killed the VDGs. The group also shared pictures of the bodies.

Kishtwar along with several other districts of Jammu region, including Rajouri, Poonch, Reasi, Udhampur, Doda and Kathua districts, recorded increased terror attacks this year.

Director General of Police Nalin Prabhat and General Officer Commanding of Jammu-based White Knight Corps Lt Gen Navin Sachdeva visited the area on Friday and later held a joint meeting to review the security situation in the district, the officials said.

Meanwhile, former president of J-K BJP Ravinder Raina and the party's Kishtwar MLA Shagun Parihar visited the village to convey their condolences to the bereaved families.