Srinagar, April 16 (IANS) Separatist guerrillas struck ahead of the second phase of local bodies elections in Jammu and Kashmir, gunning down a woman candidate in Badgam district, police here said.

 
 According to the police, the guerrillas forced their way into the house of Haseena Akhtar, 45, in Karpora village of Pakharpora area around Friday midnight.
 
 The second phase of the panchayat elections is to be held Sunday.
 
 "Militants asked Haseena to move out of her home and she came out with them. They fired at her from close range, killing her on the spot," a police officer said.
 
 She was to contest from Pakharpora.
 
 This is the first guerrilla killing of a panchayat candidate in the state.
 
 The first round of the 16-phase panchayat polls was held in eight blocks of the state Wednesday.
 
 While the killing is being seen here as an open attempt by the guerrillas to send across a message to the people not to participate in the election process, intelligence officials maintained the actual motive behind the murder is yet to be established.
 
 "We are looking at all the angles of this killing. There are some reports that the murder might not have been a message killing connected with the panchayat polls," a senior intelligence officer said Saturday.
 
 "This could be a criminal act unrelated to the panchayat polls. But, we cannot say anything categorically at the moment. The matter is being probed", he said.
 
 Chief Minister Omar Abdullah also said Saturday that the killing was not linked to the polls.
 
 "Our initial inquiry has revealed that the killing of Haseena (Bano) was not linked to panchayat polls," Omar told newsmen on the sidelines of a function here.
 
 However, Abdullah did not disclose how he reached the conclusion.
 
 The murder is unlikely to affect the voter patterns in the second and the subsequent phases of these elections.
 
 "The people in villages have eagerly participated in the campaign process with supporters of various candidates going door to door to seek support for their candidates.
 
 "The people in rural areas are determined to get self-empowerment and no fear will force them to give up this desire", said an official here.