A retired Senior Superintendent of Police was shot dead by suspected militants at a mosque in Jammu Kashmir’s Baramulla district in early hours on Sunday.

While police termed it a terror incident, it is learnt that they are investigating from all possible angles including possible rivalry.

Police officers privy to the investigation said the postmortem revealed that the retired officer Mohammad Shafi Mir, was shot with a 12-bore rifle and had splinter injuries.

“After finding that the weapon used to attack the retired officer was a 12-bore rifle, we are looking at all angles, including any possible rivalry,” they said.

Earlier the day, Police said the retired officer, identified as Mohammad Shafi Mir, was fired upon at Gantmulla village on the Baramulla Uri highway while he was offering the call of prayers in the local mosque.

He was shifted to a medical facility in Baramulla where doctors declared him dead on arrival.

“Terrorists fired upon Shri Mohd Shafi, a retired police officer at Gantmulla, Sheeri #Baramulla, while praying Azan ( call for prayers) in the mosque and succumbed to injuries,” police said in a post on X.

Soon after the attack, a joint team of forces cordoned off the area to trace the attackers.

Sources said 71-year –old Mir had retired in 2012 and was living in the village.

The incident took place in an area that has not seen any violence even during the heyday of militancy.

“This area has always been peaceful and the killing has shocked everyone here,” said a local resident of Gantmulla.

The locals said some of them heard a loud sound when the attack took place.

“Mir sahib was giving Azan on the loudspeaker from a staircase of the mosque and was fired from behind. We heard a loud blast at that time,” said another local. " He was regularly giving Azan at the mosque."

A pall of gloom descended the entire village as the news of the killing spread in the area.

The killing of the retired officer has been widely condemned. J&K Lt Governor, mainstream political parties and a Kashmiri separatist group condemned the killing.

(With UNI inputs)