Sources said that Khan, an ace footballer, surrendered before 1RR of army under 1 sector Khanabal last night around 10:30 pm. He was later handed over to Victor Force, based in Awantipora.

Days after appeal by his parents to shun militancy and return home, twenty-year-old Majid Khan who joined the ranks of militants last week has handed himself to the government forces.

Sources said that Khan, an ace footballer, surrendered before 1RR of army under 1 sector Khanabal last night around 10:30 pm. He was later handed over to Victor Force, based in Awantipora.

His mother, 50 year-old Ashiya Begum, had not eaten since last Thursday when Khan disappeared suddenly. A day later, his photograph surfaced on Whatsapp showing him posing with an assault rifle.

The distraught mother had been making fervent appeals to everyone who visited her home to help her son return home.

On Tuesday, his father, 59 year-old Irshad Ahmad Khan, suffered a mild heart attack after hearing that his son had been trapped in a gunfight in Kulgam.

Majid’s surrender comes a day after Kashmir police chief Muneer Khan reiterated the surrender offer for local men who gave up militancy.

He said that those local men who lay down arms will be adequately supported and rehabilitated.