Fayaz Ahmed Bhat was still bleary-eyed at his residence in Chundana in Ganderbal when his mobile phone rang early on Sunday morning, he told the police later. It was his sociologist son Mohammed Rafi Bhat. calling to bid farewell. "I am sorry if I have hurt you," Rafi told his father before he was gunned down in an encounter with security forces at Shopian.

Rafi had left home on Friday last week and joined the Hizbul Mujahideen terror group, the police said. The J&K police, who were monitoring all calls, sent a police team to Bhat asking him to convince his son to surrender. But barely after his family reached Bota Kadal, 14 km from their home, they heard the news about Rafi's death.