Army Called In After Terrorists Kill BJP Leader, Brother In Kishtwar

Heavily armed soldiers started patrolling the streets of curfew-hit Kishtwar in Jammu and Kashmir this morning after a BJP leader and his brother were shot dead by terrorists last night. BJP state secretary Anil Parihar and his brother Ajit were returning from their shop at 8 pm when they fell to bullets fired from close range, the police said.

The killing of the two men was the third attack on political workers in the last one month in the state, after the murder of two National Conference workers and a PDP leader in Srinagar.

"We are trying to find out the identity of the killers," senior police officer Dilbagh Singh told NDTV.

District magistrate Angrez Singh Rana said he called in the army to ensure law and order was maintained in the town that falls under Jammu region that has seen clashes in the past. In 2001, 17 people were killed in Kishtwar by terrorists in an attack that the intelligence agencies had said was an attempt to ignite violence in the region.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh and other leaders condemned the killing.

Shocked & pained by the killing of J&K State BJP leader Sh. Anil Parihar & his brother. My heart goes out to the bereaved family. Spoke to Advisor to J&K Governor, Sh Vijay Kumar regarding the incident. The police will leave no stone unturned to bring the perpetrators to justice.

- राजनाथ सिंह (@rajnathsingh) November 1, 2018

Just got the tragic news of killing of Shri Anil Parihar, Secretary @BJP4JnK, and his brother by terrorists in Kishtwar. This is a cowardly act that shames humanity. I grieve the death of my valued colleague and pray that God gives his family strength to bear this untimely loss.

- Amit Shah (@AmitShah) November 1, 2018

Strongly condemn the killing of @BJP4JnK State Secretary Shri #AnilParihar and his brother Shri #AjitParihar in Kishtwar. An act of pure cowardice - the perpetrators of this crime should be brought to justice. My thoughts are with their families in this hour of grief.

- Vasundhara Raje (@VasundharaBJP) November 1, 2018

After the killings last night, a group of people had surrounded some policemen in protest.

Senior police officer Rajinder Gupta said they have formed teams to search for the killers.

The police said the terrorists had been waiting for the brothers to cross the dark street before the attack. When locals came to know of the killings, they surrounded some senior police officers and argued with them; they also forced the district officials and the police to leave the hospital where the bodies of the two brothers were kept last night, PTI reported.

Anil Parihar's career in politics spanned 25 years; he fought the 2008 assembly elections on a Jammu and Kashmir National Panther Party or JKNPP ticket, but lost. His brother Ajeet worked with the State Forest Corporation.