A young militant of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), who had completed his Masters in Business Administration (MBA) in 2015, was killed in an operation in south Kashmir’s Pulwama on Friday.

The police said the militant, identified as Ishfaq Yousuf Wani from Pulwama’s Koil Pulwama, was killed during an anti-militancy operation in Banderpora area in the morning.

“During the searches in the area, hiding militants opened fire. It was retaliated and one militant was killed. Wani was wanted by the law for his complicity in a series of terror crimes including attacks on security establishments,” said the police.

The police said incriminating materials, including arms and ammunition, were recovered from the site of encounter. “All these materials were taken in the case records for further investigation,” said the police.

Went missing in 2015

Wani, 25, completed his MBA in 2015 and went missing in July this year. Later, his weapon-wielding photographs were uploaded online after he joined the LeT. His father, also a militant, was killed in August 1996, according to locals.

According to the family, Wani was studious and scored good marks during his schooling at the Alamdar Public School, Koil. “Wani did his B.Sc from the Government Degree College, Pulwama, and later completed his MBA. He also worked with a corporate bank,” said a family member.

Hundreds of locals participated in Wani’s funeral at Koil village. Pulwama district witnessed a spontaneous shutdown. Train service in the district was also suspended for the day.