Militant displaying weapons at funeral surrenders

Srinagar, June 7 (IANS) A young militant who displayed weapons at the funeral of Hizbul commander Sabzar Bhat has surrendered to police in Jammu and Kashmir, it was announced on Wednesday.

A police spokesman identified him as Danish Ahmed of Kulangam village in Handwara. He is a third year B.Sc. student at Dehradun.

Ahmed was photographed wearing a battle pouch with a grenade at the funeral of Sabzar Bhat. The photo, like many others, went viral on social media.

He had been involved in stone-pelting at Handwara in 2016. He was picked up by the police but let off after counselling in view of his educational career.

"Once it was learnt that Danish has joined militancy, police and Rashtriya Rifles personnel got in touch with his parents and impressed upon them to counsel their son to surrender," said a police spokesperson.

"His parents were convinced that if he surrenders, he would be dealt with fairly under law. Efforts made by security forces yielded results and Danish surrendered to the Handwara police and Rashtriya Rifles."

Ahmed told police that he was in touch with terrorists of south Kashmir on social media, and it was at their instigation that he decided to become a militant.

"He was tasked by Hizbul Mujahideen commanders to activate some local youths in north Kashmir and make the region as militancy-infested as the southern part of Kashmir.

"However, after spending a few days with the terrorists in south Kashmir, he realized the futility of joining militant ranks," the spokesman said.