Trooper, civilian killed in Kashmir gunfire

Mar 16, 2010, 14:28 GMT

Srinagar, Kashmir - A civilian and a paramilitary force trooper were killed Tuesday in an exchange of gunfire with suspected militants in a busy market area of Srinagar, capital of India-administered Kashmir, police said.

Troopers of the paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force were patrolling the Lal Chowk area in central Srinagar when unidentified people opened fire, police said.

The troopers retaliated, and a shopkeeper died in the crossfire. A trooper who was injured died soon after.

Another trooper and three other civilians had been admitted to hospital with injuries, police said.

A separatist insurgency over two decades has left more than 45,000 people dead in India-administered Kashmir.

Tens of thousands of Indian troops are based in the Kashmir Valley to fight the militants, who India claims are supported by neighbouring Pakistan.

Pakistan has denied the charge. It says Kashmiri militants are freedom fighters.

The South Asian neighbours and nuclear powers have fought two wars over the disputed Kashmir region, which is now divided in two parts, one administered by India and the other by Pakistan.

There has been a decrease in militancy-related violence over the past couple of years, but there are stray incidents at regular intervals.

Tuesday's incident followed a grenade blast Sunday in Srinagar in which a policeman was killed.