The Hindu : Front Page : Lashkar militant killed

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, May 09, 2006

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Lashkar militant killed

Devesh K. Pandey

Two other militants arrested from Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station

NEW DELHI: A Pakistani national allegedly belonging to the terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was gunned down in an encounter with the Special Cell of the Delhi police outside Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in South Delhi on Monday night. The operation was carried out at the instance of two other LeT militants who were arrested at Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station earlier in the evening.

A team under the supervision of Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Ajay Kumar received a tip-off that two militants carrying an explosive consignment would come to the Capital on board the Mumbai-Amritsar Golden Temple train at Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station. Subsequently, a trap was laid and the two were rounded up around 7 p.m. The police team recovered 4 kg of deadly RDX, four detonators and Rs. 50,000 in cash from their possession.

During interrogation, the accused claimed that they worked under codename Ali and Abdullah for LeT and had come to the Capital to deliver the consignment to their Pakistani counterpart, who operated under codename Abu Hamza. The rendezvous point had been fixed near Gate No. 1 of Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium around 9-30 p.m. Hamza was supposed to arrive there in a white Santro car bearing a Haryana registration number.

Losing no time, the Special Cell sharpshooters positioned themselves around the rendezvous point and at 9-20 p.m. they spotted the vehicle near Gate No.1 of the stadium. A person alighted from the Santro and was loitering about in the dark when the police challenged him, asking him to surrender. But, the accused whipped out a .30 firearm and opened fire at the police party and ran towards an adjacent park.

In retaliatory fire, the police injured the alleged terrorist. He was rushed to All-India Institute of Medical Sciences where he was declared dead on arrival.

Joint Commissioner of Police Karnal Singh said the deceased had been identified as a Pakistani LeT militant working under codename Abu Hamza. "But we do not know yet where he had set up his base."

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