Kashmir Valley on Thursday experienced fresh snowfall with most places, especially the plains, witnessing the first snow of the season, breaking the prolonged dry spell at the fag end of 'Chillai-Kalan', the 40-day period of harshest winter. While the snowfall was mild and brief, it nonetheless brought much joy to the locals.

A commanding officer of the counter insurgency Rashtriya Rifles, a cop and two militants were killed and a soldier was seriously wounded in a fierce encounter in south Kashmir's Tral area on Tuesday afternoon.

The Peoples Democratic Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party seem to be nearing an agreement to form a government in Jammu and Kashmir, sources said on Friday.

Protests erupted in Kashmir Valley against Charlie Hebdo cartoons.

Militants shot at and killed a police constable and wounded another person in south Kashmir's Kulgam district on Saturday morning.

In a major breakthrough, security forces on Thursday gunned down 5 hardcore militants of Jaish-e-Mohammad and Hizbul Mujahideen in a fierce gunbattle in Shopian district of south Kashmir.

A top Lashkar-e-Tayiba militant was killed in a six-hour-long gun-battle with security forces in Sopore town of north Kashmir Baramulla district, the police said.

With talks between the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Peoples Democratic Party on government formation in Jammu and Kashmir making no headway, the state seems to be headed for a spell of governor's rule.

Pakistan on Monday resumed heavy mortar shelling targeting scores of Border Out Posts and civilian areas along International Border in Samba and Kathua districts, killing a Border Security Force jawan.

Famous Dal Lake and other water bodies froze partially as Srinagar city, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, witnessed the coldest night of this winter with mercury plunging to minus 5.6 degrees Celsius.

The National Conference has offered unconditional support to the Peoples Democratic Party for formation of a coalition government in the state which has so far stumped all major political parties following a fractured mandate in the recently held state assembly polls.

Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday returned a hung verdict with the Peoples Democratic Party as the dominant one that can tie up either with the Congress or the Bharatiya Janata Party to form the government. Meanwhile, in Jharkhand the BJP and its allies headed for capturing power.

The fifth and last phase of the state assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir ended on Saturday with a turnout of 76 per cent.

The fourth phase of polling in Jammu and Kashmir ended peacefully on Sunday recording a turnout of 49 per cent, the lowest compared to the earlier three phases.

The daring militant attack on an Army camp in Jammu and Kashmir last Friday shook the people of Uri town, situated close to Line of Control in Kashmir, but it did not deter them from exercising their franchise as voters thronged the polling station on Tuesday morning.

Srinagar is under a massive security blanket for the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi's poll rally on Monday afternoon.

A Central Industrial Security Force trooper was injured on Sunday as terrorists hurled a grenade at a polling booth in Tral constituency of Pulwama district, where polling is to be held on Tuesday.

Militants on Friday struck in a big way two days ahead of the Prime Minister's visit to Jammu and Kashmir, storming an Army camp in Uri in Baramulla district, killing 11 security personnel, including a Lieutenant colonel, and following it up with multiple attacks in Srinagar, Tral and Shopian.

A high polling percentage of about 71 percent was recorded in the 18 constituencies of Jammu and Kashmir that went to polls on Tuesday in the second phase of the 5 phase assembly elections.