Jammu & Kashmir L-G Manoj Sinha vows to avenge every drop of civilians' blood

In a strong message amid targeted killings in the valley, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Sunday said that the terrorists and their sympathisers will be hunted down to avenge every drop of civilians' blood. Sinha said that attempts are being made to derange the peace and socio-economic progress of J&K and the individual growth of people.

In his monthly radio talk show 'Awaam ki Awaaz', Manoj Sinha, referring to civilians killed by terrorists in the past 10 days in the valley, said "I pay my heartfelt tributes to the martyr civilians and condolences to the bereaved families. We'll hunt down terrorists, their sympathisers and avenge every drop of innocent civilians' blood."

The J&K L-G said that his government is committed to fast-paced development and "will endeavour to build a prosperous and peaceful UT of J&K." Sinha also urged people to remember martyred security personnel.

"When we light the Deepawali lamps next month, let's light one lamp in remembrance of the martyrs among the security forces who were prematurely snatched from us by the enemies of humanity," he said.

A total of nine Army jawans have been martyred in the anti-terror operations in Poonch district. In the last two days, four bodies- Riflemen Vikram Singh Negi and Yogambar Singh, Subedar Ajay Singh and Naik Harendra Singh- of Army personnel were recovered from a forest in Poonch. The four were missing since a fierce encounter with terrorists on Thursday. In the gun battle that ensued, a JCO and four jawans were martyred.

Targeted civilian killings in Kashmir

For the past few weeks, civilians, especially Kashmir Pandits and non-locals, are been targeted by terrorists in Kashmir. On October 5, Makhan Lal Bindroo, a prominent Kashmiri Pandit, was shot dead near his pharmacy in Srinagar. Within an hour, two civilians, including a non-local street vendor, were killed. On October 7, two teachers were shot dead in a downtown area of Srinagar.

On Saturday, in another coward incident, two non-locals were killed by terrorists in separate incidents. Sagir Ahmad, a native of Uttar Pradesh, was shot dead in Pulwama. Gol-Gappa vendor Arbind Kumar Shah, a native of Bihar, was attacked by terrorists in Srinagar.

(With PTI inputs)