A source in the police said that the letter to be written by the DGP would first reach the Ministry of Home Affairs in New Delhi where from it will be formally dispatched to the Pakistan high commission.

J&K police have once again decided to write to the Pakistan high commission in New Delhi and ask it to claim the bodies of Lashkar-e-Toiba chief Abu Ismail and his aide and bury them in their native places in Pakistan.

The police also said that it has preserved the DNA samples of both the militants for their possible identification by their families.

“I will write to the Pakistan high commission in New Delhi to claim the bodies of Abu Ismail and Abu Qasim alias Chota Qasim so that they are buried in their native areas in Pakistan,” director general of police SP Vaid told Greater Kashmir over phone from New Delhi.

He said that police have preserved the DNA samples of both the militants who were killed in a brief gunfight at Aribagh, Nowgam on Thursday afternoon. Security agencies have termed the killing of Ismail as a major success for them, stating that they now expect a vacuum in the Lashkar leadership in Kashmir “which would make the job of taking on the remaining militants of the outfit, easy.”

Greater Kashmir had first reported about J&K police writing to Pakistan high commission about the body of Lashkar commander Abu Dujana on August 2. It was for the first time in the 27 years of turmoil in Kashmir that police had written to the Pakistan high commission asking it to claim Dujana’s body.

A source in the police said that the letter to be written by the DGP would first reach the Ministry of Home Affairs in New Delhi where from it will be formally dispatched to the Pakistan high commission.

Kashmir range inspector general of police, Muneer Khan said that this will be for the second time after Dujana that police will be writing to the Pakistan high commission. “We want the families of slain foreign militants to see their loved ones one last time before their burial. We have kept the bodies of Dujana, Ismail and Qasim as a trust in the graves after giving them proper burial,” Khan said.

He said that the only aim of writing to the Pakistan high commission is that family members should see their sons and offer their funeral and bury them in their native villages or towns. “The process will continue whenever a foreign militant will be killed in Kashmir,” the IGP said.

Asked whether there was any response from Pakistan over the letter sent with regard to Dujana, Khan said: “There was no response at all from their side.”

Pertinently, police decided not to hand over bodies of non-local militants to locals after witnessing a sea of mourners at the funeral of Lashkar commander Abu Qasim who was killed in October 2015. Qasim was killed in a gun-battle in Kulgam district. At least two villages literally ‘fought’ to claim his body for burial. Massive clashes were witnessed in majority of South Kashmir districts after he was finally laid to rest at Bugam village of Kulgam district.