Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Nov 27: More than three and a half months after communal violence rocked Kishtwar taking three lives and leaving many others injured besides massive loss of property, 16 guns of 12 bore, which were among 42 weapons looted from gun house in Kishtwar town, still remained untraced and there was every possibility of the guns reaching to the hands of militants.
Official sources told the Excelsior that a total of 42 guns (all 12 bore) were looted by the miscreants from a gun house in Kitchloo complex in the heart of Kishtwar town during free for all violence on August 9 on the day of Eid festival. More than three and a half months of the violence, police have recovered only 26 weapons while 16 others remained untraced.
“Quite possible,” sources said in response to a question that whether these weapons might have reached the hands of militants now as cops have searched almost all suspected houses, shops and other places in Kishtwar district, where these weapons could have been hidden after the loot.
Sources pointed out that none of the miscreants had come forward to voluntarily surrender the looted weapons and it was the police, which had recovered 26 guns either from the houses of some miscreants or lying in unclaimed position after getting specific inputs about them.
Eight persons from whose houses the looted weapons have been recovered were arrested and charged under the law. However, in case of unclaimed weapons, no arrests were made. Police have subjected several persons to sustained questioning to recover the remaining 16 weapons but the success remained elusive.
“We have interrogated the persons from whom some of the looted guns were recovered to ascertain identity of their associates, who were also involved in the looting on August 9. We have also quizzed the Over Ground Workers (OGWs) involved in the militancy. However, there had been no clues about the missing weapons.
“Most likely, the untraced guns have now fallen in the hands of militants or their OGWs,” sources said, adding that special squads formed by Kishtwar police were still on the job to recover the weapons though the focus has now shifted from Kishtwar town and outskirts to upper reaches of Kishtwar, where they could have been hidden.
Some militants of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) outfits were still active in Kishtwar. Few local people continued to work for them as OGWs.
Sources said some people had abandoned the looted weapons, leading to their recoveries while police recovered few other guns during house-to-house search operations in the town. A total of 26 guns were recovered and eight accused were arrested for the loot. Despite sustained questioning of the accused from whom the looted weapons were recovered, police couldn’t trace rest of the missing weapons.
Police admitted that recovery of 16 weapons after more than three and a half months was an impossible task unless some of the militants or the OGWs were arrested. They also admitted that the missing weapons have become a major security risk as they most likely have now landed in the hands of militants.
It may be mentioned here that large scale violence had broke out in Kishtwar town on August 9 leading to looting and arson of the property of minorities. During the violence, a gun house had also been looted. A total of 42 guns of 12 bore were looted from the shop in Kitchloo complex in Kishtwar town.
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