Rifleman Aurangzeb of 44 Rashtriya Rifles who was abducted and brutally murdered by the terrorists on Thursday could have been singled out because of his attachment as a "Buddy" to Major Rohit Shukla.
A "Buddy" is a partner assigned to an officer in the Indian Army above Captain Rank to assist him both in and out of combat. Interestingly, Major Mohit Shukla is the army officer who with his team had eliminated Hizbul Mujahidin commander Sameer Tiger in Kashmir in April.
A video, uploaded on social networking site, Twitter shows that Aurangzeb is being questioned by the terrorist about his closeness to Major Rohit Shukla. An army deserter is suspected to have been behind the abduction of Aurangzeb though Army, local police and other agencies verifying the incidence. Major Rohit Shukla became a national hero after killing Hizbul commander Sameer Tiger who had challenged him for a face-to-face encounter.
Aurangzeb was posted with 44 Rashtriya Rifle camp at Shadimarg in Shopian. On Thursday morning, army personnel from his unit stopped a private vehicle asking the driver to drop Aurangzeb to Shophian.
Aurangzeb, a resident of Rajouri was on his way to celebrate Eid with his family. As the vehicle approached Kalampora, the car was stopped at the gunpoint and the Jawan was kidnapped. Later that day, his dead body was recovered from Pulwama. The twin murder of Aurangzeb and senior Journalist Sujaat Bukhari has sent chilling waves in the Kashmir valley during the holy month of Ramzan. The Army is also expected to end the suspension of operations in Jammu and Kashmir, post Eid, in wake of numerous attacks on civilian populations and security personnel.
Apparently, Kashmiris serving in the Army and the state police have been targeted by the terror outfits across the valley. Last year in May young Lieutenant Umar Fayaz was abducted from a wedding function at his house. Later his bullet-ridden body was found in the nearby area. The list goes long as many State police officials have also murdered by the militants. The extent of the attacks was so much that security forces had to issue an advisory to its personnel to avoid visiting their homes during their leave period.
