NC president denounces attack as heinous and demands high-level probe into killing of two party workers

The National Conference (NC) demanded on Friday a high-level probe into the killing of two party workers here in the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir.

Two NC workers were killed and an office bearer was injured after terrorists fired at them in the Karfali area of the city Friday. The deceased were identified as Mushtaq Ahmed Wani and Nazir Ahmed Bhat. The injured, Shakeel Ahmad, was a Halqa president of the NC. Gram panchayats are known as Halqa in Kashmir.

Expressing anguish, NC president Farooq Abdullah denounced the attack as heinous and despicable and demanded a thorough investigation into it.

"We demand a high-level, time-bound and impartial probe into the incident. The guilty must not be spared," he said.

Party vice-president Omar Abdullah termed the attack an act of terrorism and a "ploy to stifle our voice".

Omar said the security situation had gone out of the hands of the governor's administration.

"The incumbent administration had already removed security of some of our functionaries. All this needs to be unearthed and brought before people. There seems to be some sort of a design into the killings of our party men today and it is up to the investigating agencies to identify the killers and bring them to justice," he said.

"The killings are taking place in broad daylight and that too in an urban heart. We expect the governor's administration to move its men and machinery to ensure justice is done swiftly," he added.

In a tweet, he linked the killings to the upcoming urban local bodies elections.

"The people who have filed their papers to contest the elections are all in protective custody in police stations, security force camps or in homes with lots of security. Unfortunately, my colleagues have become easy targets to send out a message to the candidates & potential voters," he tweeted later in the day.

Omar also visited the Police Control Room in Srinagar, where the bodies of Mushtaq Ahmed Wani and Nazir Ahmed Bhat were kept and expressed sympathies with the bereaved families.