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Kashmir : After bank robberies, cash transaction stopped in 40 branches

by IBNS 05 May 2017, 09:58 pm

Srinagar, May 6 (IBNS) : Police have stopped cash transactions in at least 40 branches in Pulwama and Shopian of South Kashmir following a sudden spurt in bank robberies by suspected militants in the last few days.

“A customer can deposit cash in the form of cheques and he can even transfer his money,” a JK Bank official has been quoted by the local media. 

Customer can neither deposit nor withdraw the cash. In a way, these bank branches will be cashless and will do business in receipt form only, the bank official added. 

The Bank official refuted the reports that some ATM’s have been shifted to safer places in South Kashmir. 

Unidentified gunmen, suspected to be militants, have struck banks, especially J&K Bank, the largest in the state, at least nine times since November 8, looting more than Rs 50 lakh.

Police have blamed Hizbul Mujahideen and Lashkar-e-Taiba for the incidents, saying it is a sign of cash-starved militants trying to keep the funds flowing. 

However, militant organisations Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizbul Mujahideen have said that they don’t believe in bank robberies and blamed New Delhi for maligning their image. 



(Reporting by Saleem Iqbal Qadri)