Suhail Dar
A Kashmiri pandit family, who did not migrate from the Kashmir valley at the peak of militancy in 1990, lost their son Bantoo Ji Sharma when suspected militants shot him dead on Friday evening in the Kulgam district of South Kashmir.
Bantoo Ji was a policeman, deployed with the Railway Police, and was the sole bread earner for his family.
Locals speaking to The Kashmiriyat said that Bantoo Ji was targeted when he was returning home in civies after winding up the day of work.
As the news of his death reached the area the entire area burst into mourning. People reached his house to express solidarity with the bereaved family while the local men arranged the necessary items for the last rites of Bantoo Ji Sharma.
Amidst wails and mourning, Nazir Ahmed Ganie spoke to The Kashmiriyat and said that he was our own. “This was the only family in Wanpoh area that did not leave the Kashmir valley, they stayed here and always have been a part and parcel of the locality,” he said.
Another local Abbas Ahmed Ganie said that it feels like my own son has died today. He often came to our house. Bantoo’s father was very close to everyone. These kids (Bantoo and his brother) used to be always around the locality, play with the local children, everyone knew them, he said, adding, “the whole area is in solidarity with the family.”
He is survived by his wife, six-year-old daughter, and ailing mother. His father had died earlier.
This is the second targeted killing of police personnel in the last week in Kashmir valley.
On September 12, a Sub-Inspector Arshad Ashraf Meer was ‘mercilessly’ shot dead in the Khanyar area of Srinagar.
Two policemen were shot dead from a close range by masked gunmen in the Barzulla area of Srinagar while they were waiting for their teacups in February 2021.
In June, Inspector Parvaiz Ahmad Dar, working with the criminal investigation department (CID) wing of Jammu Kashmir Police was shot near his house in Nowgam when he was returning home after offering evening prayers.