Jammu and Kashmir terrorist attack: Three arrested for firing and injuring Srinagar restaurant owner's son

The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Friday arrested three men, who were allegedly involved in an attack on a restaurant owner's son in Srinagar on February 17, the day a 24-member delegation of foreign envoys arrived on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir, said a senior police officer.

"We have arrested three men, who were involved in the attack at the Krishna Dhaba in which one civilian was injured," Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kashmir zone Vijay Kumar told reporters. He said acting on a tip-off that the attackers had come on a two-wheeler, a special investigation team headed by an officer of the rank of superintendent of police got the leads on them after going through the CCTV footage obtained from the area.

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Subsequently, two of the accused were arrested, Kumar said, adding that the two-wheeler and the weapon used in the commission of the crime were seized from their possession.

During the questioning, the duo revealed the involvement of another accused in the crime, who was also arrested. The IGP said the three men were lured into militancy by a commander of the proscribed terror outfit, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

They were tasked with carrying out a strike at the Krishna Dhaba, a popular eatery with tourists and locals. "The purpose of the attack was to instil fear among the tourists," the officer said.

The popular food joint Krishna Dhaba is located in a high-security area of Srinagar. The victim, Akash Mehra, was immediately rushed to Shri Maharaja Hari Singh (SMHS) Hospital. Incidentally, the area is just one kilometre from the hotel where foreign envoys have been staying.

Banned terror outfit Muslim Janbaz Force/TRF has claimed responsibility for the attack. At about 7.45 pm Srinagar Police received information about a terror crime incident at Krishna Daba area of Dalgate Srinagar where terrorists had fired upon a civilian. Senior police officers reached the spot. The terrorists used a pistol for crime and two empty cartridges were recovered from the spot. 

Mehra is the son of Krishna Dhaba's owner Ramesh Kumar Mehra, a resident of Janipora in Jammu. The police have registered a case in this regard under relevant sections of law. The investigation is in progress and officers continue to work to establish the full circumstances of this terror crime.

An eyewitness and uncle of the Akash, Subhash Chandra had said, "I was inside the shop few people came inside the shop and shot Akash he got two bullets they left and fired outside also." As per the official sources, Krishna Dhaba was full of tourists at the time of the firing. 

The eatery, which is famous for serving vegetarian food, is located in the Durganag area of the city. Several high-profile installations like the office of UN Military Observers Group for India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) and the residence of the Jammu and Kashmir chief justice are located within 200 metres of the food joint.

The attack came on a day when a group of envoys including those from several European Union countries and a few Organisation of Islamic Countries' member states began a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir to get a first-hand account of the situation in the newly carved union territory, especially after the recently-concluded local body elections. 

The envoys which have representation from four Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC)--Malaysia, Bangladesh, Senegal and Tajikistan -- were taken to Magam in central Kashmir amid heightened security arrangements in the city and elsewhere in the Valley, officials had said. 

This was the second attack on non-Kashmiri residents in the city after the abrogation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. Earlier in January, a jeweller, Satpal, settled in Kashmir for the last five decades, was shot dead. The Resistance Front, a shadow outfit of the Lashkar-e-Taiba terror group, had claimed responsibility for the attack.