Mohammad Rafi Bhat was a professor of sociology at Kashmir University

New Delhi: Mohammad Rafi Bhat, an assistant professor of Kashmir University who was among five terrorists found dead after an encounter in south Kashmir's Shopian on Sunday, had only one gunshot injury on the head, according to reports reaching the union home ministry.

The Jammu and Kashmir police that was also part of the operation is now probing whether the teacher was killed by terrorists.

The family of Bhat who taught sociology at Kashmir University had told the police that he had been untraceable since Friday. Police said they got the family of the assistant professor, who had joined the terrorist group Hizbul Mujahideen, to persuade him to surrender but he refused.

Home ministry officials are worried about the recent spurt in encounters in the valley, particularly those in the past week. "The last three days were intense and so would the next three days be," said a senior official.

Latest inputs available with the ministry suggest that terrorists are trying to mobilise protests by school children. "We have cautioned security forces to be more careful," a senior official told NDTV.

Ministry officials have also made a detailed presentation to National Security Adviser Ajit Doval on the current challenges in Kashmir. State police chief SP Vaid was also present at that meeting along with other senior officers. 

Mr Doval has asked the state police to ensure that tourists visiting Jammu and Kashmir are not harmed. On Monday, a tourist from Chennai who was hit by a stone during clashes between protesters and security forces near Srinagar died in hospital.