Date:21/12/2002 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2002/12/21/stories/2002122105730100.htm

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Three girls killed

By Luv Puri

Jammu Dec. 20. In a terrorist act, an unidentified group of militants shot dead three girl students in Rajouri district of Jammu region late on Thursday night. Police denied an agency report that the killings were linked to the alleged campaign by militants to enforce the veil (burqa) for Muslim women.

The Senior Superintendent of Police, Prithvi Raj Minhas, told The Hindu that militants swooped on the house of Mohammad Sadiq in Hasyote village of Thannamandi area and shot dead his daughter, Noureen Kousar. Then they barged into the house of Khalil Ahmad in the same village and kidnapped her daughter Tahir Parveen (18), a 12th Class student, and later beheaded her. Continuing their killing spree, they entered the house of Mohammad Rafiq and shot dead his daughter, Shehnaz Akhtar.

Police said the killings were apparently due to the suspicion among the militants that the three girls were police informants.

On Monday, police had seized some posters signed in Urdu by a little known group — Lashkar Jabbar — pasted on the walls of two senior secondary schools in Rajouri town and neighbouring villages threatening girls to wear "burqa" or face the consequences.

The Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, said the entire civilised society would condemn such inhuman acts.