The victim, 19-year-old Huzaif Kuttay, was a baker by profession.
Highlights
- Huzaif Kuttay's body was found with the throat slit in a Shopian orchard.
- The incident follows the "execution" of a teen by terrorists a day ago.
- Omar Abdullah is among those who have condemned the killings.
A 19-year-old's body was found with the throat slit in Kashmir's Shopian district on Saturday, barely 36 hours after a schoolboy was summarily executed by terrorists on suspicion of aiding security forces.
Huzaif Kuttay, a baker from nearby Kulgam district, was among five people abducted by terrorists from various villages across the district earlier today. Police said that while two others were freed after questioning, the rest remain missing.
Mr Kuttay's body was recovered from an orchard in Hermain village. "Terrorists killed the civilian in a brutal act of terror after he was kidnapped earlier in the day from Saidpora area," a police officer said.
The incident comes close on the heels of terrorists summarily executing a 17-year-old boy from Safanagri village on suspicion of being an informer for security forces on Thursday night. A video of the incident went viral on the social media yesterday, drawing strong condemnation from netizens and political parties alike.
Former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah condemned Mr Kuttay's murder on Twitter soon after his body was found. "Another dastardly killing of a young man, and this time the terrorists slit his throat. This barbarism has no place in our society. No struggle, no matter how lofty the claims to justify it, can condone this inhuman behaviour," he said.
Mr Kuttay's body was handed over to his family after the completion of medico-legal formalities, police said.
The clip from the previous incident shows the boy, a Class 11 student, sitting on the ground with his hands presumably tied up. One of the terrorists is heard asking why he had gotten one of their colleagues killed. However, multiple shots ring out before the youngster can even answer, and he slumps to the ground motionless.
The boy's family said he was summoned by the terrorists on Thursday, following which he went to meet them on their own. "His brother suggested that he go into hiding, but he said he wasn't scared because he had done nothing wrong. That evening, we heard that he had been killed," said a relative.
Terrorists in Kashmir occasionally kill people suspected of being police informers as a warning to others who may want to aid security personnel in the state. However, this was the first time a clip of the "execution" had been posted on the social media.
(With inputs from PTI)