Srinagar encounter ends; 2 militants holed up inside Delhi Public School killed

The militants had entered the Delhi Public School located close to the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway last evening after attacking a CRPF party in the nearby Pantha Chowk, killing one officer and injuring a constable.

The road opening party of the CRPF was attacked in high security zone located less than a kilometre away from the headquarter of the Srinagar-based Army Corps.

Immediately thereafter, the security forces cordoned off the school premises which has seven buildings, comprising 36 rooms, and the staff and others were evacuated last night itself.

An offensive to flush out the militants was launched this morning, a police official said.

"The exchange of fire between security forces and militants began at around 3.40 am," he said.

"The gunbattle is over and two militants have been killed," the official said this evening after over 14-hour armed engagement.

He said the search and sanitization operation was, however, underway at the encounter site.

Two Army personnel were injured in the gunbattle this morning, the official said. He said the injured have been taken to a hospital.

Earlier, Jammu and Kashmir's Director General of Police S P Vaid had said that there were reports of the presence of two militants inside the building but the exact number would be known after the search of the complex was over.

On the operation getting prolonged, he told reporters, "There are 36 rooms, the building is huge. So, it has to be searched floor by floor, room by room."

He said the security forces wanted to ensure that the (school) building was safe.