Srinagar Nov 24 PTI Three militants including a self-styled commander of terror outfit The Resistance Front TRF wanted in the recent civilian killings in the city were gunned down by security forces on Wednesday officials saidThe brief shootout occurred at the Rambagh area in the city they saidOfficials said the three militants including Mehran Shalla the self-styled commander of TRF were travelling in a car when they were waylaid by the security forcesThe militants were shot dead as they tried to escape they saidApart from Shalla a resident of the Jamalata area of the city the other two slain militants are Manzoor Ahmad Mir and Arafat Sheikh both residents of Pulwama officials saidAccording to the officials the militants were affiliated with TRF an offshoot of Lashkar-e-TaibaMehran was wanted by the security forces in connection with several civilian killings including the shooting of two teachers inside a school in the Eidgah area of Srinagar last month they said PTI MIJ NSD

Srinagar Nov 18 PTI The Hurriyat Conference on Thursday called for a shutdown on November 19 in support of the families of the two civilians killed in the Hyderpora encounter demanding justice for the victims and return of their bodiesA controversy has erupted over Mondays encounter in Hyderpora following conflicting claims about the two deceased as their family members contested the polices charge that they were terror associatesThe Hurriyat Conference in a statement said the Hyderpora encounter has stunned the people of Kashmir Since most leaders and political activists are either in jails or under house detention to protest such inhumanity Hyderpora encounter and in solidarity with the devastated families of the slain civilians and their demand that the bodies of their loved ones be returned to them for burial people should observe a shut down on Friday on their own it saidAccording to the police Mohammad Amir of Famrote village in Ramban was a militant and was killed along with his Pakistani accomplice in the Monday evening encounter in Hyderpora where an illegal call centre and a terror hideout were allegedly being runTwo civilians -- Altaf Bhat and Mudassir Gul -- were also killed in the firing triggering an angry reaction from their family who claimed they were innocent and not linked to militancyThe family members of two civilians staged a sit-in at the Press Enclave in Srinagar on Wednesday and held a candlelight vigil after the daylong protest They were forcibly removed from the site by police around midnight and a few of them were detained officials said on ThursdayOn Thursday the Jammu and Kashmir administration ordered a magisterial probe into the Hyderpora encounterLieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said in a tweet A magisterial inquiry by an officer of ADM rank has been ordered in Hyderpora encounter The government will take suitable action as soon as the report is submitted in a time-bound manner J-K admin reiterates its commitment of protecting lives of innocent civilians and it will ensure there is no injustice PTI MIJ NSD