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Shia leader Agha Syed Mehdi killed in blast

Agha Syed Mehdi, a prominent Kashmiri Shia leader was killed along with three of his security guards in a powerful blast at village Kanihama in Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday afternoon.

Police said the bullet-proof vehicle in which the Shia leader was travelling hit a landmine on Kanihama-Magam road in central Budgam district resulting in on-the-spot death of Agha Syed, the three security guards and two others.

The sources said that an improvised explosive device was planted in an underground water pipe. The IED exploded when the vehicle passed over the spot ripping apart the bullet proof gypsy.

The blast was so powerful that the occupants were blown to pieces and police had difficulty in identifying the bodies.

A senior police officer said that the Shia leader was on his way to Magam in Budgam district from Kanihama village.

Sources identified the victims as Agha Syed Mehdi, Assistant Sub-Inspector Ghulam Mohammad, constables Showkat Ahmed and Farooq Ahmed. The two others - Sajad Ahmad Mir and Mohammad Jaffer - were supporters of the slain leader.

Senior officials rushed to the spot along with reinforcements. The area was cordoned off and searches mounted. No one has owned responsibility for the blast.

The bodies of all the six victims were brought to Magam in the evening and police sources said the body of the Shia leader would be taken to his hometown Budgam late in the night.

As news of the incident reached Budgam and other Shia-dominated areas in north Kashmir and the capital Srinagar, supporters of the slain leader took to the streets shouting religious slogans.

Shopkeers in Shia-dominated areas of Budgam, Pattan and Srinagar downed their shutters. Police said the situation in Budgam was tense.

Security has been further tightened in all the Shia-dominated areas in Kashmir, including Budgam. Paramilitary forces and police have begun patrolling the areas. The situation in the Valley was reviewed at a high level meeting in Srinagar.

The meeting decided to beef up security of all political leaders following the killing.

Another prominent Shia leader and former minister Moulvi Iftikhar Hussain Ansari escaped two attempts on his life, on June 2 and September 2, this year.

Fifteen persons, including security guards of the Moulvi, died and several others were wounded. A Shia militant outfit Hizbul Momineen had claimed responsibility for the June 2 attempt.

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