Twenty people, accused of the public lynching of deputy superintendent Ayub Pandith, were arrested in Kashmir over the course of the last month, said Kashmir IG Munir Khan, during a press conference on Monday. One of the accused was killed in an encounter in Budgam on 12 July  for resisting arrest and links to militant outfits, he added.

Deputy Superintendent of Police Mohammad Ayub Pandith was killed on 22 June, after he opened fire at a group of people who caught him clicking pictures near the Jamia Masjid in Nowhatta area of old Srinagar on the night of Shab-e-Qadar, said a PTIreport.

The DSP was posted at the access control of the mosque to prevent miscreants from disrupting the atmosphere so that people can offer prayers in peace, the report added.

A case was registered under Section 302 of RPC and the investigation taken up. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) was set up to look into the case and speed up the investigation process , a police spokesman was quoted saying in the report.

The police had also asked for help from the public to solve the case.

In the press conference on Monday, Munir Khan said that the leads Jammu and Kashmir police received from the public were helpful in identifying and capturing of the people who swarmed the police officer.

Khan said that after getting leads from the public and ongoing investigations, "five main accused were arrested," who were involved in this gruesome act. Khan added that after talking to the accused and custodial questioning, "they led us to other accused that were involved. Evidence such as the iron rod that was used on Ayub Pandith, his pistol, police ID and cell phone taken by miscreants were recovered."

He said in the conference that 90 percent of the case was solved and a few details and arrests needed to be made and will be done in the near future. He also stressed on the seriousness of the incident and described it as a 'first of it's kind' in the valley, said a tweet by ANI.

Khan, however, said the murder of the officer was a spontaneous act and did not look like a pre-planned one. He said the involvement of senior separatist leader Mirwaiz Umer Farooq in the killing was under the scanner. The Mirwaiz had delivered a sermon inside the Jamia Masjid in Nowhatta area on 23 July as it was the holy night of 'Shab-e-Qadr'.

With inputs from agencies