A wave of grief and unrest has swept through the Ajas area of Bandipora district after a local resident, Altaf Lalli, was killed in what the Indian Army described as an anti-militancy operation on April 25. However, his family and locals strongly dispute the official narrative, alleging he died in custody days after being summoned for police questioning.
The incident comes just days after a deadly militant attack on April 22 in Baisaran Valley near Pahalgam, which killed 26 people, 25 of them tourists and one local who resisted the attack.
The attack, one of the deadliest in recent years, has triggered heightened security operations across the region.
According to an Army spokesperson, a joint cordon-and-search operation involving the Army, police, and paramilitary forces was launched on April 25 in the Kulnar-Bazipora area of Bandipora. Security forces reportedly came under fire from militants hiding in the area, leading to a gun battle in which one militant, identified as Altaf Lalli, was killed. Two policemen were injured in the exchange and hospitalised.
However, Altaf’s family and neighbours present a starkly different account.
“He was taken days earlier — alive”
Family members say Altaf was picked up by police on April 23, the day after the Pahalgam attack, for questioning about his brother, a former militant who had surrendered years ago. It wasn’t the first time Altaf had been called in, they said.
This story was originally published in maktoobmedia.com. Read the full story here.
