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Updated: Apr 25, 2018 21:47 IST

A mainstream political worker currently associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) died on Wednesday in a suspected militant attack in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district.

Chief minister Mehbooba Mufti condemned the killing of Ghulam Nabi Patel and identified the slain man as a “senior Congress leader”. The Congress denied that he was currently with the party. GN Monga, state vice president of the Congress,said Patel had left the party in 2008. “After leaving us, he joined PDP (Peoples Democratic Party) and then he joined some other party,” said Monga.

Heartfelt condolences to the family of senior Congress leader, G. N. Patel who was killed by militants today in Rajpora. Such cowardly acts achieve nothing but leave one more family devastated. — Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) April 25, 2018

The BJP said Patel was one of its members. BJP spokesman Altaf Thakur confirmed that Patel had been working with the party. “He did not hold any party position but had been associated with us for a year now,” said Thakur.

Police said that Patel, a resident of Dangerpora Shadimarg , was travelling in a vehicle when militants opened fire on it at Rajpora Chowk in Pulwama.

“Terrorists fired upon a Scorpio vehicle at Rajpura Chowk in which Ghulam Nabi Patel and two policemen got injured. Patel succumbed to his injuries in the fatal attack,” a police spokesman said.

Imtiyaz Ahmad Zargar and Bilal Ahmad Mir, the two personal security officers of Patel, sustained bullet injuries and were moved to hospital.

Mehbooba condemned the attack. “ Such cowardly acts achieve nothing but leave one more family devastated,” she tweeted.

The attack came a day after four militants, a policeman and an army soldier were killed in an encounter in Tral area of Pulwama.