Militants attack Mehbooba Mufti, 3 killed

Continuing their attacks on contesting candidates and party leaders, militants on Sunday attacked ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti and a member of the Jammu and Kashmir assembly killing three persons and injuring 45.

Separatists have called for a poll boycott.

Police said the PDP chief however escaped unhurt when militants attacked her motorcade while she was campaigning in Kulgam area in south Kashmir. She is the PDP candidate from Anantnag Lok Sabha seat.

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"Militants hurled a hand grenade on her motorcade, which missed the vehicle of the PDP chief and exploded on the road injuring ten persons," said a police official reached by telephone.

Among those injured is Sheikh Tariq, the cameraman of a TV channel.

The police shifted three critically injured persons to the sub-district hospital.

Late Sunday afternoon, militants ambushed the vehicle of ruling party MLA Zahoor Mir near Pampore in Pulwama district. Security guards returned the fire. No one was hurt in the incident.

Unprecedented security arrangements have been put in place to ensure peaceful polling in Srinagar LS constituency, which will be the only one in J&K involved in the second phase.

Poll staff and security personnel have reached all the 1,080 polling booths in the constituency. They will spend the night inside the polling booths in view of security considerations, according to sources in Srinagar.

Militants also attacked a police station at Lal Bazaar in downtown Srinagar on Sunday afternoon injuring six persons, including five security personnel.