Baramulla shuts to remember Hizb commanders

Srinagar: Baramulla district in north Kashmir observed a complete strike on Saturday to mark the third anniversary of two locals Hizbul Mujahideen commanders. Correspondent quoting eyewitnesses said that almost all the commercial establishments including shops and patrol pumps remained closed throughout the day in the Bramulla town and its peripheries. Schools and other educational institutes also remained shut while attendance in government and semi government institutes remained thin. Most of the traffic was off the roads, eyewitnesses added.  On April 23 2008, two prominent Hizbul Mujahideen cadres—Tanvir Ahmad  Khan alias Tanna Khan, the district commander, and Imtiyaz Ahmad Khan alias Ana Khan, the battalion commander, were killed in a fierce gunfight with a joint party of Army’s 46 Rashtriya Rifles and Special Operations Group of police Khawajabagh Baramulla.The killings had triggered massive anti-Army demonstrations and thousands of people participated in the funeral prayers of the slain duo.Pertinently, with the neutralization of the commanders, then DIG north Kashmir during a press conference had claimed that militancy in entire north Kashmir ended completely.  The two commanders were said to have carried out a series of deadly attacks against the army and were known for their accuracy in land mine blasts.