New Delhi police said Tuesday they had shot dead a Muslim militant suspected of involvement in an assault on the capital's Red Fort, as one hardline militant group threatened further audacious attacks.
"An encounter took place early this morning ... in which one militant was killed and another nabbed in the capital's south district," an official of the Delhi police counter-insurgency cell told AFP.
The shootout took place at 5:40 am (0010 GMT) during a raid on a residential area in south Delhi, the official said, adding that police had recovered an AK-47 rifle, two grenades and some ammunition.
The dead militant was identified as Abu Shawal and his captured comrade as Ashaf Ali, who reportedly gave police the names of six more people involved in the Red Fort attack on Friday night.
Both men were believed to be Pakistani nationals.
The Paksitan-based Lashker-e-Toiba -- a pan-Islamic militant group operating in Indian-administered Kashmir -- claimed responsibility for Friday's attack, in which three people, including two army personnel were killed.
The Red Fort houses an army garrison and interrogation center.
A high-level joint police and army probe has been ordered into the security lapse that allowed the armed militants to approach undetected.
More than 1,000 policemen, soldiers and military intelligence officials on Tuesday were still carrying out house-to-house searches in a two-kilometer (1.25-mile) radius from the fort.
Meanwhile, the Laskher-e-Toiba issued a press release Tuesday, threatening a suicide attack against the offices of Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee.
"Our mujahideen, Allah willing, will storm Vajpayee's office and carry out a fidayeen (suicide) attack there," the Lashker statement said.
"If our cadres can force an entry into Delhi's Red Fort, it will not be an uphill task to barge into Mr. Vajpayees's office."
Lashkar was among the first militant groups to reject the unilateral Indian army cease-fire in Kashmir which was ordered by Prime Minister Vajpayee and came into force at midnight November 27.
Last week, Vajpayee extended the cease-fire for another four weeks.
"The government should leave the politics of cease-fire and withdraw its troops from Kashmir," the Lashker release said.
"If India fails to withdraw its troops we will intensify our fidayeen attacks within India and force it to pull out its troops."
Observers say the recent attacks on high-profile targets were aimed at delivering a clear message that hardline militant outfits will not be sidelined by the cease-fire process -- NEW DELHI (AFP)
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