Srinagar: Altaf Ahmad Dar alias Altaf Kachroo, an A++ terrorist, has been killed with another associate in Muniward, a village at the periphery of south Kashmir’s Anantnag district.
In his mid-30s, Altaf, famous as Aale Kachur — with brunette beard and azure eyes — was a “silent killer”. His affair with militancy started since he was a kid: in early 2000s.
Hailing from Hawoora village of Kulgam district Altaf was second among his three siblings. His father, Ghulam Mohammad Dar, was also a Hizbul Mujahideen militant, who was killed during 90s near the Line of Control (LoC) while trying to cross over.
He was working as an upper ground worker of militants since he was a kid, a childhood pal of Altaf told News18.
After graduating from the Government Boys College Khanabal, Anantnag, Altaf became more proactive.
He was arrested in 2005 and jailed for over a year for his militancy links.
After his release, he lay low for some time but started working again for the militants actively.
“He used to guide militants and ferry weapons,” a relative of Altaf told News18.
In 2008, Altaf was again arrested and put in Srinagar’s central jail for almost a year.
In 2012, when forces were again searching looking for him, Altaf finally joined the Hizb, actively.
“He was working closely with militants from 2005,” said his cousin. “After his formal joining, he was already an experienced hand and not the new recruit.”
Silent Killer
The new militants in Kashmir regularly upload their photographs and videos on social media but there are only a few pictures and videos of Altaf. Unlike other commanders, he would not record audio and video messages. But he was the man on the ground.
“His activities were not limited to just south Kashmir. He was involved in attacks in Srinagar also,” said a police official.
Senior superintendent of Police, Anantnag, Altaf Ahmad Khan termed killing Altaf as a “big success”.
“He was involved in the killing of Sarpanchs, civilians and security personnel. He would barge into the house of police personnel, vandalise the property, and threaten them,” said Altaf Khan.
Police had named him in the recent killing of a civilian in south Kashmir.
Last year, as Army made public the list of top militants in Kashmir, Altaf was in top five.
Altaf was one of the few senior militants working in south Kashmir.
Joint forces were looking for Altaf for a long time, as part of ‘killing the commanders’ strategy.
Though he had managed to slip from the encounter sites a number of times in the past, this time the forces zeroed in at the exact location.
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