Suspected militants shot dead a civilian late on Sunday after abducting him from his home in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district, PTI reported.

“Terrorists in Murran area of Pulwama barged inside the house of Gulzar Ahmad Bhat and abducted him [on Sunday],” an unidentified police official said. Bhat’s bullet-riddled body was recovered from a field on Monday, Greater Kashmir reported.

“Initial investigation in the matter suggests that Zahoor Thokar and Showkat Dar of the Hizbul Mujahideen outfit are involved in this killing,” an unidentified police official said. The police have registered a case and started an investigation.

Thokar, a former soldier with the 173 Battalion of the Territorial Army, deserted his post in July 2017 and joined the militant outfit. In July, he was suspected to have been involved in an attack on a police post guarding the home of a National Conference leader. A police officer was killed in the attack.

This attack came hours after suspected militants killed a policeman and injured four security forces personnel in Srinagar’s Batmaloo locality.